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PRESS RELEASE – For Immediate Release
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Among the 252 urban areas that participated in the third quarter of the 2024 Cost of Living Index, the after-tax cost for a professional/managerial standard of living ranged from more than twice the national average in New York (Manhattan) NY to more than 20 percent below the national average in Decatur, IL. The Cost of Living Index is published quarterly by C2ER – The Council for Community and Economic Research.
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The Ten Most and Least Expensive Urban Areas
in the Cost of Living Index (COLI)
Review of Quarter Three in 2024
National Average for 252 Urban Areas = 100
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The Cost of Living Index measures regional differences in the cost of consumer goods and services, excluding taxes and non-consumer expenditures, for professional and managerial households in the top income quintile. Covering 61 different items, prices are collected quarterly by chambers of commerce, economic development organizations, and university applied economic centers in each participating urban area. Small differences should not be interpreted as showing a measurable difference.
The composite index is based on six component categories – housing, utilities, grocery items, transportation, health care, and miscellaneous goods and services.
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What Do Groceries Cost?
The C2ER grocery index is drawing data from over 320 million grocery prices derived from 1.5 trillion historical data points collected across the country to generate the most accurate data possible. Datasembly’s weekly collection covers 200 national and regional retailers and quick service restaurants representing over 150,000 brick and mortar locations across 30,000 zip codes. With food prices still being a big part of the national conversation, C2ER decided to feature those communities once again with the most and least expensive food costs as measured by the grocery item index number. The twenty-six items priced come from a variety of surrogate categories to represent the grocery item component of the index. With food prices still being a big part of the national conversation, C2ER decided to feature those communities once again with the most and least expensive food costs as measured by the grocery item index number. The twenty-six items priced come from a variety of surrogate categories to represent the grocery item component of the index.
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The Five Most and Least Expensive Places for Grocery Items by Index Number in the Cost of Living Index (COLI)
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Review of Quarter Three in 2024
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Average for 252 Urban Areas = 100
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The Most Expensive and Least Expensive Cities for Dentist Visits
It’s Halloween! A night for frights and fun, and for many, a time for sweets. But be careful with that sugar tooth, because if you have too much, you may end up at the dentist sooner than your typical 6-month checkup. If you live in Manhattan, Winchester, or any of these cities, a visit to the dentist can cost upwards of $168 just for a regular cleaning, so be wary of gorging yourself on sweets and risking cavities, or make sure to at least brush your teeth thoroughly (and floss!). For those who live in Columbia, San Juan, or any of these other cities where the cost of a visit to the dentist is $50 to $80, perhaps you can enjoy that additional piece of candy, and then wait an hour before brushing, according to Cindy Zhou, D.M.D., M.S. with the Mayo Clinic. If you want to know how much you can expect to spend on a dentist checkup in your city and whether that second (or third, fourth, fifth…) candy bar is worth it, be sure to check out the COLI Q3 2024 publication!
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The Five Most and Least Expensive Places for Dentist Visits
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Review of Quarter Three in 2024
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Average for 252 Urban Areas = $118.32
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The quarterly Cost of Living Index is available by subscription for $190 per year for the print version and $180 per year for the PDF. The electronic version is available for $300 per year. Be sure and ask about our Expanded Excel version which covers more household and income types. Send check, payable to C2ER, P.O. Box 12546, Arlington VA 22209, or subscribe on the Internet at www.coli.org.
If you need additional information on the Cost of Living Index or other COLI-related products such as the COLI Web Calculator and the COLI Historical Index, please contact Tyler Baines at tbaines@crec.net or by phone at 703-522-4980.
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