The Rockford Area historically has a lower cost of living than the U.S. average, similarly sized cities, many major metropolitan areas, and surrounding cities in the Midwest. This provides our residents a bigger bang for their buck, giving them access to big-city living at affordable prices. This also positively impacts the cost of doing business by keeping wages as a comparatively-lower percentage of business overhead.
Using data provided by C2ER, key expenses in dozens of major cities are compared. Costs include housing, utilities, transportation and health care.
City Comparison
| Metro Area | Composite Index |
|---|---|
| Birmingham, AL | 95.4 |
| Tucson, AZ | 102.4 |
| Little Rock, AR | 95.6 |
| San Diego, CA | 146.3 |
| Denver, CO | 114.7 |
| Washington, DC | 154.4 |
| Quad Cities (Davenport-Bettendorf-Moline-Rock Island, IA-IL) | 89.8 |
| Bloomington, IL | 94.9 |
| Champaign-Urbana, IL | 89.8 |
| Chicago, IL | 120 |
| Rockford, IL | 92.9 |
| Springfield, IL | 96.2 |
| Indianapolis, IN | 91.6 |
| Detroit, MI | 103.8 |
| Minneapolis, MN | 102.5 |
| St. Louis, MO | 87.7 |
| New York (Manhattan), NY | 172.6 |
| Chapel Hill, NC | 105.8 |
| Raleigh, NC | 92.6 |
| Cleveland, OH | 92.4 |
| Portland, OR | 127.5 |
| Pittsburg, PA | 100.7 |
| Memphis, TN | 85.9 |
| Austin, TX | 101.3 |
| Seattle, WA | 149.4 |
| Madison, WI | 105.8 |
| Milwaukee, WI | 98.5 |
