Overall
89.5
Cheap
Metro cost profile · 2024 BEA RPP
Wichita Falls, TX
Cost-of-living indicators for Wichita Falls, TX, from Bureau of Economic Analysis Regional Price Parities, overall, goods, services, and rents vs the U.S. average of 100.
- 89.5
- Overall RPP
- #297
- of 387 metros
- 68.2
- Rents RPP
- $112K
- $100K national buys
Wichita Falls ranks #297 of 387 U.S. metros by cost, and its overall price index has fallen 4.0 points since 2008.
- falling since 2008
- similar cost to Altoona
The verdict
Wichita Falls costs less than 77% of U.S. metros, an overall index of 89.5, 10.5% below the national average, with rents the biggest swing at 68.2.
- bottom 23%
- by overall cost, nationwide
- 93.8
- goods RPP, tradable items
- 84.1
- services RPP, labor-priced
A $100,000 national salary carries the purchasing power of about $111,716 here; matching a $100K lifestyle takes roughly $89,513.
Salary Equivalent
A $100,000 salary at the national average cost of living equals:
$89,513
in Wichita Falls, TX purchasing power
$50,000 nationally
$44,757
$75,000 nationally
$67,135
$125,000 nationally
$111,891
$150,000 nationally
$134,270
$200,000 nationally
$179,026
Use the salary calculator for custom amounts.
Affordability score
C
72/100
How far the median local paycheck goes here, combining income and housing cost
Purchasing power
Not reported
Housing affordability C
72nd percentile
A weighted composite (60% purchasing power, 40% housing affordability) percentile-ranked against every other tracked metro; a missing input redistributes its weight rather than deflating the score. Sources: Census ACS 5-Year 2023 (income) + BEA Regional Price Parities 2024 (cost). Vintages differ by design; see methodology.
Housing-led affordability profile
How Wichita Falls's cost structure works
Housing is the strongest affordability offset in Wichita Falls: rents index at 68.2, the component furthest below the national benchmark. That does not make every local expense low, but it is the clearest explanation for the metro's overall RPP of 89.5.
Across all reported metros, the closest component-profile matches are Ames, IA, Longview, TX, Victoria, TX. They resemble Wichita Falls across goods, services, and rents together, so they are stronger structure peers than a place selected only because its overall RPP happens to be nearby.
Across 2008-2024, Wichita Falls's overall index has fallen by 4.0 points. This is a relative price-level history, not a prediction or a personal affordability recommendation; pair it with current local wages and housing options before making a decision.
Wichita Falls vs every U.S. metro
Where this metro sits in the national cost distribution
90 Bottom 23% higher than 23% of 387 US metros
Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more US metros. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities · 2024
Wichita Falls cost breakdown
BEA RPP by category, 100 = national average
- Rents
Rents
68.2 RPP
- Services
Services
84.1 RPP
- Overall
Overall
89.5 RPP
- Goods
Goods
93.8 RPP
What this shows Wichita Falls's cost structure is housing-led: rents at 68.2 depart furthest from 100, while services sits at 84.1. This is a rent-sensitive profile, not a claim that every local expense moves together.
Goods vs. housing, where Wichita Falls's cost comes from
Metros near Wichita Falls's overall cost, plotted by their goods price (horizontal) and housing price (vertical). Same headline RPP, very different structures.
Read the chart as text
- Wichita Falls (Wichita Falls, this metro): goods RPP 93.8, rents RPP 68.2
- Altoona: goods RPP 100.7, rents RPP 55
- Longview: goods RPP 93.8, rents RPP 66.7
- Columbia: goods RPP 94.2, rents RPP 69.2
- Canton: goods RPP 93.6, rents RPP 58.1
- Kokomo: goods RPP 94.3, rents RPP 59.3
- Little Rock: goods RPP 93.6, rents RPP 68.3
Price Index Summary
Goods
93.8
Below avg
Services
84.1
Cheap
Rents
68.2
Cheap
Latest BEA release change
What changed from 2023 to 2024
Wichita Falls's overall RPP did not change 0.0 points, from 89.5 in 2023 to 89.5 in 2024. The largest category movement was services, changing from 89.5 to 84.1. This is a relative change against the national benchmark, not a household's dollar bill.
RPP History (2008-2024)
The cost of living has been trending downward, decreasing by 4.0 points over this period. The largest single-year move was in 2018, when the index dropped 3.3 points from the year before.
Wichita Falls overall RPP, 2008-2024
Every year on record, national average = 100
| Year | Overall |
|---|---|
| 2008 | 93.5 |
| 2009 | 90.8 |
| 2010 | 91.9 |
| 2011 | 94.1 |
| 2012 | 94.0 |
| 2013 | 93.2 |
| 2014 | 94.4 |
| 2015 | 93.6 |
| 2016 | 93.0 |
| 2017 | 91.8 |
| 2018 | 88.5 |
| 2019 | 89.7 |
| 2020 | 92.5 |
| 2021 | 90.7 |
| 2022 | 88.4 |
| 2023 | 89.5 |
| 2024 | 89.5 |
Metros with Similar Cost of Living
These metros have an overall RPP closest to Wichita Falls, TX's index of 89.5.
Showing the 6 closest of 387 metro areas tracked nationally.
TX-relative analysis
Goods prices places Wichita Falls, TX near the bottom of TX's metros
Among the 26 TX metros PlainCost tracks with reported goods prices data, Wichita Falls, TX ranks #3 - the 4th percentile within the state. This is a different, narrower cut than the nationwide rank above: it compares Wichita Falls, TX only against its own state's metros, not the full US field.
Goods prices
#3 of 26
4th percentile in TX
Services prices
#5 of 26
81st percentile in TX
Rent prices
#20 of 26
23rd percentile in TX
Ranked by raw value (highest first); a higher rank is not automatically "more expensive is worse", see the national comparison above for direction context. This is a comparison within TX only, not a livability score.
Nationwide metros with similar overall cost or rent prices
Two BEA RPP-derived peer sets for Wichita Falls, TX: nearest metros by overall regional price parity and by rents RPP. These are cross-state neighborhoods, not the in-state metro list below.
Similar overall RPP
Nearest metros by overall regional price parity (89.5 here).
Similar rents RPP
Nearest metros by rents regional price parity (68.2 here).
Other TX Metros
Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX 103.1 Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX 98.6 Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX 98.1 Midland, TX 95.8 San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX 94.7 Odessa, TX 93.9
View all TX metros → Cheapest in TX → Most expensive in TX →
Decision peers
Metros with a similar cost mix
These metros are closest to Wichita Falls's combined goods, services, and rents profile. They may not have the same overall RPP, but their price pressures are shaped in a similar way.
Ames, IA
Goods 93.7 · Services 83.0 · Rents 69.2 Longview, TX
Goods 93.8 · Services 83.5 · Rents 66.7 Victoria, TX
Goods 93.8 · Services 85.3 · Rents 69.3 Columbia, MO
Goods 94.2 · Services 86.0 · Rents 69.2 Michigan City-La Porte, IN
Goods 94.3 · Services 86.4 · Rents 68.5 Beaumont-Port Arthur, TX
Goods 93.8 · Services 83.1 · Rents 70.9
Compare to Other Metros
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Cost of living guides →, cheapest and most-expensive metro rankings, salary negotiation with RPP data, and step-by-step comparison walkthroughs.
What this means for Wichita Falls
How to read Wichita Falls's cost of living before a move, a job offer, or a budget.
- Budget to local prices, not headline pay, a $100K national salary spends like about $111,716 in Wichita Falls. Salary calculator
- Start with rents: it indexes at 68.2, the largest departure from the national benchmark in this metro's BEA cost mix. Compare it with the other components before treating the overall RPP as a complete household budget.
- Compare Wichita Falls head-to-head against a specific destination before you decide. Compare metros
RPP is BEA's annual price-level benchmark for the data year shown, not a live market quote. Pair it with current local wages and housing costs before deciding.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the cost of living in Wichita Falls, TX?
Wichita Falls, TX has a Regional Price Parity (RPP) index of 89.5, meaning it is 10.5% less expensive than the national average. Goods are indexed at 93.8, services at 84.1, and rents at 68.2. It ranks #297 out of 387 U.S. metro areas by overall cost.
What salary do I need in Wichita Falls, TX to match $100K nationally?
To maintain the same purchasing power as a $100,000 salary at the national average, you would need approximately $89,513 in Wichita Falls, TX. Conversely, $100K earned in Wichita Falls, TX has the purchasing power of $111,716 at the national average.
How expensive is rent in Wichita Falls, TX?
Rents in Wichita Falls, TX are indexed at 68.2, which is 31.8% below the national average. This makes the area relatively affordable for renters.
Is Wichita Falls, TX getting more expensive?
From 2008 to 2024, Wichita Falls, TX's overall cost index changed by -4.0 points (from 93.5 to 89.5). The cost of living has been declining.
What costs the most in Wichita Falls, TX?
The priciest category in Wichita Falls, TX is goods at 93.8, 6.2% below the national average, still the highest of the three categories. The most affordable category is rents at 68.2, 31.8% below average.
What metros have a similar cost of living to Wichita Falls, TX?
Metros with the most similar overall cost index include Altoona, Longview, Columbia. These areas have RPP values within a few points of Wichita Falls, TX's 89.5.
Data sources
- BEA Regional Price Parities (RPP), the cost-of-living indices shown on this page
- U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey (ACS), gross-rent observations behind the rents component
- BLS Consumer Price Index (CPI), goods and services price relatives
- BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), labor-driven services component
- HUD Fair Market Rents (FMR), 40th-percentile rent cross-reference
Every figure on PlainCost is rendered directly from BEA Regional Price Parity source data, no number is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, our changelog, or report a data error. Data current as of 2026-08-11. Rankings measure the published cost-of-living index only; we don't recommend where to live or rate any metro's quality of life.