Prices in California run 10.7% above the national average, while prices in Arkansas run 13.1% below it, according to the Bureau of Economic Analysis’s latest Regional Price Parities. That gap is the core of the cost-of-living argument for moving to another state. But the headline number hides a lot. Most of the difference between states comes from one category, housing, and the actual savings depend heavily on which two states you’re moving between. This report uses BEA price data and IRS migration records to show what the most common interstate moves actually change in purchasing power.
Quick answer: On most busy corridors analyzed, price levels drop roughly 3% to 12% at the destination, though some routes go the other way. A California household moving to Texas faces prices about 12.3% lower, and rents about 37.5% lower. For the average California-to-Texas mover, that price gap is worth roughly $15,100 a year in equivalent income, before taxes and any change in pay.
What Regional Price Parities Measure
Regional Price Parities (RPPs) compare the price level of goods and services in each state with the national average, which is set at 100. An RPP of 110 means prices are 10% above average; an RPP of 90 means they are 10% below. BEA publishes an all-items index plus separate indexes for goods, housing rents, and other services. The figures below are for 2024, released on February 19, 2026, and the full state and metro series is available from BEA’s Regional Price Parities by State and Metro Area data page.
Two things to keep in mind:
- RPPs are state averages. Prices in San Francisco and Fresno are both part of California’s 110.7. Moving between specific metros can produce a bigger or smaller gap.
- RPPs are not a tax comparison. State income and property taxes are separate from these price levels.
The Most and Least Expensive States in the Latest BEA Data
| State | All-items RPP | Housing rents RPP | Goods RPP |
| California | 110.7 | 154.3 | 106.1 |
| Hawaii | 110.0 | 125.3 | 111.6 |
| District of Columbia | 109.9 | 155.0 | 106.5 |
| New Jersey | 108.8 | 134.3 | 107.1 |
| New York | 107.9 | 122.2 | 107.3 |
| Washington | 107.0 | 126.0 | 104.4 |
| Massachusetts | 105.8 | 128.1 | 98.8 |
| West Virginia | 89.5 | 54.2 | 96.5 |
| Alabama | 88.8 | 61.8 | 96.4 |
| Louisiana | 88.2 | 63.1 | 93.7 |
| Oklahoma | 87.8 | 62.8 | 93.8 |
| Iowa | 87.8 | 65.3 | 93.7 |
| Mississippi | 87.0 | 56.5 | 96.2 |
| Arkansas | 86.9 | 58.2 | 93.6 |
Source: BEA, Real Personal Consumption Expenditures and Real Personal Income by State, 2024; category detail from BEA Regional Price Parities by State and Metro Area. U.S. average = 100.
Housing is where the gap lives
Look at the columns side by side. The goods index runs from 93.6 (Arkansas) to 111.6 (Hawaii), a spread of about 18 points. The housing rents index runs from 54.2 in West Virginia to 155.0 in the District of Columbia, a spread of more than 100 points. Groceries, cars, and clothing cost roughly the same across most of the country. Housing does not. BEA notes that California had the highest RPP for housing rents at 154.3 and West Virginia the lowest at 54.2 among the states.
So a move saves the most when housing is a big part of your budget and when you are leaving a high-rent state. If you own your home outright in an expensive state, a lot of that advantage doesn’t apply to you in the same way, though selling at high-cost-state prices and buying at low-cost-state prices can free up equity.
What Movers Save on the Busiest Interstate Routes
To see what the price gap means in practice, we paired BEA’s 2024 RPPs with the IRS Statistics of Income state-to-state migration data for 2022–2023. The IRS files count tax returns (a close proxy for households) that changed state between filing years and report the total adjusted gross income (AGI) of those households. Dividing total AGI by the number of returns gives an average AGI per moving household on each route.
Method (illustrative calculation): Equivalent income change = average AGI × (origin RPP ÷ destination RPP) − average AGI. This estimates how much more (or less) income the same household would need at the origin to match the buying power it has at the destination. It assumes income stays the same after the move and ignores taxes.
| Route | Households (returns) | Average AGI | Price level change | Rent level change | Equivalent income change per year |
| California → Texas | 44,417 | $107,273 | -12.3% | -37.5% | +$15,101 |
| California → Nevada | 26,210 | $102,572 | -9.7% | -26.1% | +$11,020 |
| California → Arizona | 28,402 | $87,556 | -9.1% | -30.8% | +$8,734 |
| New Jersey → Florida | 20,113 | $147,067 | -5.0% | -9.1% | +$7,667 |
| New York → Pennsylvania | 20,643 | $70,945 | -9.6% | -30.4% | +$7,525 |
| Florida → North Carolina | 20,553 | $77,338 | -8.8% | -33.4% | +$7,451 |
| California → Oregon | 16,765 | $87,846 | -6.6% | -29.6% | +$6,254 |
| New York → Florida | 43,187 | $133,218 | -4.2% | 0.0% | +$5,806 |
| Florida → Georgia | 28,263 | $65,134 | -6.9% | -27.4% | +$4,817 |
| Florida → Texas | 24,196 | $70,034 | -6.1% | -21.0% | +$4,587 |
| California → Washington | 24,625 | $111,507 | -3.3% | -18.4% | +$3,863 |
| North Carolina → South Carolina | 18,026 | $84,221 | -0.6% | -1.1% | +$518 |
| New York → New Jersey | 43,699 | $116,966 | +0.8% | +9.9% | -$950 |
| Pennsylvania → Florida | 16,395 | $120,372 | +6.0% | +43.5% | -$6,800 |
| Texas → California | 24,970 | $95,486 | +14.1% | +59.9% | -$11,783 |
Sources: household counts and AGI from IRS SOI Migration Data 2022–2023 (state outflow file); price levels from BEA 2024 Regional Price Parities. Price, rent, and equivalent income changes are our calculations using the method above.
Five Takeaways From the Route Data
1. California exits produce the biggest price savings
Every route out of California in the table lowers the price level, and the California-to-Texas corridor, the single busiest interstate route in the IRS file, shows the largest gain. The average household on that route reported $107,273 in AGI. At Texas price levels, that income buys what about $122,000 would buy in California.
2. Not every popular move saves money
New York to New Jersey is the second-busiest route in the data, with 43,699 households. But New Jersey’s price level (108.8) is slightly higher than New York’s (107.9), and its rent index is almost 10% higher. People on this route are usually moving for space, schools, or taxes within the same metro area, not for lower prices overall.
3. Florida is no longer cheap for everyone
Florida’s all-items RPP of 103.4 is above the national average, and its rent index (122.1) is the same as New York’s. A New Yorker still gains a bit on overall prices, but a household moving from Pennsylvania (97.6) to Florida faces prices about 6% higher and rents about 43% higher. Florida’s appeal for these movers is more about climate, taxes, and lifestyle than day-to-day costs.
4. Short hops save little
North Carolina to South Carolina is a heavy route (18,026 households), but the two states have nearly identical price levels, 94.3 and 93.7. Moves like this are usually driven by jobs, housing choice, or family, not by a big cost-of-living gap.
5. Reverse moves cost real money
About 24,970 households moved from Texas to California. For them, the price level rises about 14.1% and rents about 59.9%. The average household on that route reported $95,486 in AGI and would need roughly $11,800 more a year to keep the same buying power, unless the move comes with a raise. Many do, which is why high-cost states still draw people for career moves.
Prices Are Rising Faster in Some States Than Others
An RPP tells you where prices stand in a given year, not how fast they are changing. BEA’s release also reports each state’s implicit regional price deflator, which captures price growth. In 2024, the national PCE price index rose 2.6%, but the BEA release (PDF) shows wide variation by state:
- Montana: the implicit regional price deflator rose 6.7%, the main reason Montana had the largest decline in real consumer spending (-0.2%) even though current-dollar spending grew 6.5%.
- North Dakota: the deflator rose 3.5%, and real personal income fell 2.2%, the largest decline of any state.
- California and Washington: the deflator rose just 1.3% in each state, and they posted the two largest gains in real personal income (5.5% and 5.0%).
The lesson for movers: today’s price gap is not guaranteed to last. BEA itself notes that housing rents are often the main driver of differences in RPPs, so watch rent trends in your target metro, not just the state average.
How Price Trends Are Moving in 2026
RPPs are a snapshot of price levels. The latest national trend data comes from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. In the August 2026 Consumer Price Index, prices for all items rose 3.4% over 12 months, with shelter up 3.0%, food up 2.7%, and energy up 16.3%. These are national figures, though; on their own they don’t show whether the housing gap between states is widening or closing.
Energy is the category to watch for movers this year. A 16.3% jump in energy prices affects everyone, but it hits hardest for households that drive long distances or heat and cool large homes. If you’re moving to save on housing, factor in commute length and utility costs at your destination.
How to Calculate Your Own Cost-of-Living Savings
- Start with your after-tax income and current housing cost. Housing is where most of the difference is, so use your actual rent or mortgage payment rather than a state average.
- Look up the RPP for your origin and destination. Use the all-items number for general spending and the housing rents number for a rough sense of what rent will do. If you can, check the metro-level RPPs BEA publishes, since they are more precise than state figures.
- Adjust for income changes. If your job, pay, or remote-work arrangement changes with the move, use the new number. A lower cost of living means little if your income drops by more.
- Add taxes separately. State income, sales, and property taxes can add to or offset the price-level gap.
- Subtract the one-time cost of the move. The first year’s savings need to cover the cost of moving your household. Get a written estimate so you can plug in a real number rather than a guess.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which state has the highest cost of living?
Among states, California had the highest all-items Regional Price Parity in 2024 at 110.7, followed by Hawaii (110.0) and New Jersey (108.8). The District of Columbia was 109.9. Those figures come from BEA’s release of February 19, 2026.
Which state has the lowest cost of living?
Arkansas had the lowest all-items RPP at 86.9, followed closely by Mississippi (87.0), Iowa (87.8), and Oklahoma (87.8). West Virginia had the lowest housing rents index of any state at 54.2.
How much do people save moving from California to Texas?
Texas’s overall price level is about 12.3% lower than California’s, and its rent index is about 37.5% lower. For the average California-to-Texas household in IRS data ($107,273 in AGI), that’s worth about $15,100 a year in equivalent buying power, assuming income stays the same and not counting taxes.
Is Florida cheaper than New York?
Slightly, on overall prices. Florida’s all-items RPP (103.4) is about 4.2% below New York’s (107.9), but the two states have almost the same housing rents index (122.1 vs. 122.2). Florida is above the national average on both measures.
Why does housing make such a big difference?
Goods prices vary only modestly across states (the goods RPP ranges from 93.6 to 111.6), while housing rents vary enormously (54.2 to 155.0). Since housing is usually a household’s largest monthly expense, it drives most of the cost-of-living gap between states.
Do Regional Price Parities include taxes?
Not as a tax comparison. RPPs measure price levels for goods, rents, and services. State income and property taxes need to be considered separately when comparing the total cost of living in two states.
Next Step: Put the Moving Cost Into Your Math
A cost-of-living comparison isn’t complete until it includes what it costs to get there. Before you decide, get written estimates from licensed interstate movers based on an actual inventory of your home, and ask whether each quote is binding or non-binding. Under federal rules, a mover that gives a non-binding estimate must release your shipment at delivery if you pay up to 110% of the estimate (49 CFR 375.407). Interstate Moving and Relocation Group can provide a written estimate so you can see how quickly the savings at your destination pay back the move.
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