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PRESS RELEASE – For Immediate Release
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Among the 272 urban areas that participated in the third quarter of the 2025 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 Tupelo, MS. 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 2025
National Average for 272 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.
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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 2025
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Average for 272 Urban Areas = 100
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The Most Expensive and Least Expensive Cities for Monthly Energy Bills
Nationally, electricity prices have been rising faster than inflation, and our Q3 2025 data shows how those increases translate differently across regions. The average monthly energy costs across 272 urban areas reached $224.80. Energy expenses varied widely from 633.58 in Fairbanks, Alaska, the highest in the nation, to $117.83 in Lake Charles, Louisiana. While these regions are in different areas geographically and climate wise, both sides illustrate how local conditions influence household energy costs and regional affordability.
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The Five Most and Least Expensive Places for Monthly Energy Bills
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Review of Quarter Three in 2025
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Average for 272 Urban Areas = $224.80
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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 Alec Romero at aromero@crec.net or by phone at 571-397-2374.
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