BEA regional price parities, 2024

Compare a wage in two metros

The dollars BLS published, then those dollars in national prices. A higher wage in a more expensive metro can buy less.

Financial Managers in San Angelo, TX and Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX

MetroPublished medianEmploymentPrice parityIn national prices
San Angelo, TX$136,03016092.453$147,134
Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX$166,91018,57098.629$169,230

Financial Managers in San Angelo, TX · Financial Managers in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX

A wage of $145,117 in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX has about the same purchasing power as the $136,030 median in San Angelo, TX. In the other direction, $156,458 in San Angelo, TX matches the $166,910 median in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX.

Price parities describe a broad price level for 2024. Wages are May 2025. The index is not a household budget and it is not a cost-of-living allowance. How the comparison works.

Questions this page answers

How are wages adjusted for local prices?

A nominal wage is divided by the metro's 2024 all-items regional price parity and multiplied by 100. The United States equals 100. The parity is the Bureau of Economic Analysis series released February 19, 2026. The wages are the May 2025 OEWS estimates.

What salary in one metro matches a salary in another?

Multiply the salary by the second metro's price parity and divide by the first metro's price parity. The comparison page does that for the published median and for a wage you enter.