State cost profile · 2024 BEA RPP
Cost of Living in Illinois
Statewide Regional Price Parities for Illinois from the Bureau of Economic Analysis, overall, goods, services, and rents vs the U.S. average of 100, across 8 metro areas.
- 100.0
- Statewide RPP
- #19
- of 51 states by cost
- 93.9
- Rents RPP
- 8
- Metro areas
Illinois ranks #19 of 51 states by cost, and its statewide price index has held steady since 2008.
- stable since 2008
- rose +1.2 points in the 2023-2024 release
- similar cost to Nevada
The verdict
Illinois costs less than 37% of U.S. states, a statewide index of 100.0, 0.0% below the national average.
- Services
- furthest category from 100, at 85.0
- Nevada
- closest statewide cost peer, 0.0 points away
- Chicago-Naperville-Elgin
- highest-cost metro, 103.6
- Decatur
- lowest-cost metro, 88.4
A $100,000 national salary carries the purchasing power of about $100,042 when earned in Illinois.
Illinois vs every U.S. state
Where this state sits in the national cost distribution
100 Top 37% higher than 63% of 51 US states
Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more US states. 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
Illinois RPP history, 2008–2024
The statewide index has changed by only 0.4 points from 2008 to 2024. The line shows every retained BEA release against the national benchmark of 100; the table preserves the component detail.
| Year | Overall |
|---|---|
| 2008 | 100.3 |
| 2009 | 101.6 |
| 2010 | 101.8 |
| 2011 | 102.0 |
| 2012 | 100.9 |
| 2013 | 100.2 |
| 2014 | 99.7 |
| 2015 | 98.9 |
| 2016 | 99.5 |
| 2017 | 100.3 |
| 2018 | 100.4 |
| 2019 | 99.5 |
| 2020 | 100.3 |
| 2021 | 101.3 |
| 2022 | 101.2 |
| 2023 | 98.8 |
| 2024 | 100.0 |
Reading the Illinois Cost of Living Picture
Illinois clusters near the national line with Nevada, Delaware, Arizona as its closest statewide peers. In that near-par lane, the component mix matters more than the small headline distance from 100. Its category range is 18.9 points: large enough to separate housing-sensitive and service-heavy budgets, but not a single-component outlier.
Illinois captures 8 metro areas in the BEA dataset, and the range across them is meaningful. Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN leads on cost at 103.6, while Decatur, IL sits at the opposite end at 88.4 - a gap of 15.2 index points inside a single state. For goods the state indexes at 103.8, for services 85.0, and for rents 93.9. Rents sit within 6.0 points of the statewide index, so no single category is distorting the headline — unusual, and it makes the state number more transferable between households than most.
Over time, Illinois's statewide index has held steady within 0.4 points, suggesting a stable competitive position against other states. Practically, this means a $100,000 national salary delivers the purchasing power of about $100,042 of national buying power when earned inside Illinois, and a household relocating here would need roughly $99,958 to reproduce a $100K lifestyle. With 8 reporting metros inside the state, treat this figure as the midpoint of a range rather than a quote for any one address.
Metro areas in Illinois, ranked by cost
| # | Metro area | Overall | Goods | Services | Rents |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Chicago-Naperville-Elgin | 103.6 | 107.3 | 83.6 | 112.0 |
| 2 | Kankakee | 96.4 | 93.6 | 89.4 | 92.9 |
| 3 | Bloomington | 93.5 | 93.6 | 89.6 | 74.7 |
| 4 | Springfield | 92.7 | 93.6 | 90.4 | 71.6 |
| 5 | Champaign-Urbana | 92.7 | 93.6 | 90.5 | 71.6 |
| 6 | Rockford | 92.2 | 93.6 | 89.4 | 70.1 |
| 7 | Peoria | 91.2 | 93.6 | 90.5 | 63.8 |
| 8 | Decatur | 88.4 | 93.6 | 91.1 | 56.2 |
The Rents RPP index measures housing costs relative to the national average (100). For the federal 40th-percentile Fair Market Rent by bedroom size and county, see the HUD Fair Market Rents dataset.
Latest BEA release change
What changed from 2023 to 2024
Illinois's overall RPP rose +1.2 points, from 98.8 in 2023 to 100.0 in 2024. The largest category move was services, changing from 80.4 to 85.0. RPP is a relative price index, so this reports a change against the national benchmark rather than a household's dollar bill.
What this means in Illinois
The statewide index is a starting point, cost varies metro to metro within Illinois.
- Don't rely on the state figure alone: Chicago-Naperville-Elgin (103.6) and Decatur (88.4) sit 15 index points apart inside Illinois. Check your specific metro.
- Rents index at 93.9 (6.1% below average) - the largest swing in the RPP. Review the housing line before any relocation decision. Highest rents
- Weighing Illinois against another state? Convert your salary to local purchasing power first. Salary calculator
RPP is BEA's annual price-level benchmark (national average = 100) for the data year shown, pair it with local wages and current rents before deciding.
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Cost of living guides →, cheapest and most-expensive rankings, cost of living vs wages, and how BEA constructs RPP data.
States with Similar Cost of Living
These states have RPP indices closest to Illinois, making them useful peers for relocation or budget comparison.
Nationwide states with similar overall cost or rent prices
Two BEA RPP-derived peer sets for Illinois: nearest states by overall regional price parity and by rents RPP. These are labelled nationwide neighborhoods, distinct from the closest-RPP list above.
Similar overall RPP
Nearest states by overall regional price parity (100.0 here).
Similar rents RPP
Nearest states by rents regional price parity (93.9 here).
Source: Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities Index where national average = 100
Frequently Asked Questions
Where does Illinois sit versus the national cost-of-living line?
Illinois has a Regional Price Parity (RPP) index of 100.0, meaning it is 0.0% less expensive than the national average. Goods are indexed at 103.8, services at 85.0, and rents at 93.9.
What salary in Illinois equals $100K nationally?
To maintain the same purchasing power as a $100,000 salary at the national average, you would need approximately $99,958 in Illinois. Conversely, $100K earned in Illinois has the purchasing power of $100,042 at the national average.
Is housing expensive in Illinois?
Rents in Illinois are indexed at 93.9, which is 6.1% below the national average. Housing costs are close to the national average.
Which metros stretch Illinois's cost range the widest?
The most expensive metro area in Illinois is Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN with an RPP of 103.6. The most affordable is Decatur, IL at 88.4. There are 8 metro areas in Illinois with BEA price data.
Is Illinois getting more expensive?
From 2008 to 2024, Illinois's overall cost index changed by -0.4 points (from 100.3 to 100.0). The cost of living has remained relatively stable.
What is most expensive in Illinois compared to the U.S. average?
The most expensive category in Illinois is goods at 103.8, which is 3.8% above the national average. The most affordable category is services at 85.0, 15.0% below average.
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 2024. Rankings measure the published cost-of-living index only; we don't recommend where to live or rate any metro's quality of life.