In the 4th quarter of 2001, Missouri had the 11th lowest cost of living in the United States (of the 45 states and the District of Columbia surveyed by ACCRA). In general, the most expensive areas to live are New England, Alaska, and the West Coast. The least expensive areas continue to be the Midwest and Southern States.
Missouri slipped in the rankings since the 3rd quarter of 2001 when it had the 3rd lowest cost of living. The cost of living index for Missouri increased to 94.3 from 92.4. All categories increased, with the largest being in the Housing and Utilities categories. (Kansas City's participation in the 4th quarter survey increased Missouri's average cost of living index.)
Missouri's larger metropolitan areas had COL indices that were close to the national average in the 4th quarter. For example, Kansas City was more expensive than the national average, and St. Louis and Columbia were just under the national average. These areas, as well as St. Joseph, had COL indices above the Missouri average, suggesting that metropolitan areas are generally the most expensive areas in Missouri to reside.
Chambers of commerce in cities across the nation participate in ACCRA's survey on a volunteer basis. No cities in DE, HI, ME, NH, or RI participated last quarter.
| 4th Quarter 2001 Cost of Living Figures | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| State | Rank | Composite Index | Grocery Items | Health Care | Housing | Misc. Goods and Services | Transportation | Utilities |
| AK | 42 | 127.0 | 130.6 | 158.7 | 124.8 | 121.4 | 127.5 | 130.6 |
| AL | 6 | 93.2 | 95.4 | 88.8 | 86.3 | 98.2 | 95.4 | 92.7 |
| AR | 1 | 90.5 | 94.5 | 89.9 | 81.2 | 95.4 | 90.3 | 95.9 |
| AZ | 24 | 98.4 | 101.0 | 108.3 | 94.2 | 95.2 | 106.3 | 104.9 |
| CA | 41 | 124.5 | 117.9 | 131.2 | 156.1 | 106.5 | 116.1 | 108.0 |
| CO | 37 | 105.1 | 106.1 | 110.8 | 112.0 | 97.4 | 110.6 | 100.3 |
| CT | 44 | 130.1 | 110.9 | 136.5 | 174.6 | 105.5 | 107.7 | 137.9 |
| DC | 45 | 130.6 | 116.2 | 114.9 | 169.4 | 114.6 | 118.4 | 114.9 |
| FL | 30 | 100.2 | 100.3 | 98.8 | 96.4 | 101.2 | 103.8 | 106.1 |
| GA | 9 | 94.1 | 98.5 | 92.6 | 86.0 | 99.9 | 92.3 | 92.7 |
| IA | 14 | 95.0 | 91.1 | 93.2 | 93.1 | 98.1 | 98.5 | 92.8 |
| ID | 23 | 97.7 | 93.6 | 98.8 | 95.8 | 98.7 | 106.9 | 96.6 |
| IL | 26 | 99.0 | 97.7 | 96.4 | 97.3 | 101.0 | 106.0 | 92.0 |
| IN | 8 | 93.6 | 93.9 | 94.0 | 91.1 | 95.8 | 93.3 | 93.5 |
| KS | 17 | 96.2 | 95.6 | 92.8 | 92.3 | 98.9 | 97.9 | 100.0 |
| KY | 7 | 93.6 | 96.9 | 90.3 | 88.0 | 98.9 | 89.6 | 92.3 |
| LA | 21 | 97.3 | 94.9 | 91.8 | 98.2 | 98.4 | 96.1 | 99.8 |
| MA | 46 | 141.0 | 110.6 | 133.4 | 191.0 | 112.7 | 121.3 | 173.4 |
| MD | 10 | 94.1 | 93.9 | 94.4 | 90.8 | 97.7 | 97.2 | 87.5 |
| MI | 28 | 99.5 | 107.5 | 88.9 | 102.5 | 100.5 | 95.5 | 80.7 |
| MN | 18 | 96.3 | 99.0 | 100.0 | 84.8 | 101.5 | 102.7 | 99.6 |
| MO | 11 | 94.3 | 93.8 | 97.4 | 89.6 | 98.9 | 92.3 | 93.7 |
| MS | 3 | 92.5 | 91.7 | 83.6 | 89.6 | 97.3 | 90.9 | 92.7 |
| MT | 29 | 100.1 | 107.9 | 98.0 | 96.1 | 99.7 | 105.5 | 94.7 |
| NC | 20 | 96.9 | 100.0 | 91.0 | 97.3 | 98.1 | 91.1 | 95.0 |
| ND | 13 | 94.9 | 97.0 | 82.7 | 86.4 | 101.0 | 96.8 | 100.7 |
| NE | 15 | 96.0 | 98.1 | 91.9 | 94.6 | 97.6 | 100.7 | 86.1 |
| NJ | 40 | 116.3 | 114.1 | 124.6 | 131.3 | 109.4 | 102.6 | 108.5 |
| NM | 36 | 105.0 | 102.8 | 106.8 | 115.0 | 100.1 | 103.3 | 95.2 |
| NV | 39 | 106.7 | 114.0 | 124.1 | 103.1 | 99.6 | 118.7 | 108.2 |
| NY | 43 | 127.2 | 113.8 | 118.4 | 159.3 | 111.5 | 108.8 | 134.2 |
| OH | 22 | 97.7 | 105.5 | 95.4 | 90.5 | 96.5 | 92.2 | 120.8 |
| OK | 4 | 92.6 | 94.0 | 92.8 | 85.2 | 97.3 | 90.0 | 99.6 |
| OR | 38 | 106.2 | 107.6 | 120.2 | 101.3 | 106.8 | 112.9 | 100.7 |
| PA | 32 | 100.8 | 98.0 | 91.6 | 96.8 | 101.6 | 102.8 | 119.8 |
| SC | 25 | 98.9 | 101.5 | 97.4 | 98.5 | 100.2 | 93.0 | 98.4 |
| SD | 27 | 99.3 | 98.8 | 96.3 | 96.0 | 102.6 | 96.1 | 103.4 |
| TN | 2 | 91.0 | 94.9 | 86.4 | 84.7 | 96.5 | 92.5 | 83.0 |
| TX | 5 | 93.1 | 89.7 | 98.8 | 87.4 | 96.6 | 95.8 | 98.2 |
| UT | 16 | 96.2 | 106.1 | 91.4 | 84.6 | 101.0 | 103.9 | 90.5 |
| VA | 34 | 102.5 | 100.4 | 103.7 | 103.9 | 102.8 | 97.6 | 105.3 |
| VT | 31 | 100.5 | 106.8 | 108.6 | 88.7 | 100.0 | 104.5 | 120.9 |
| WA | 33 | 102.0 | 104.8 | 122.4 | 96.3 | 103.4 | 109.7 | 87.8 |
| WI | 19 | 96.4 | 93.6 | 104.0 | 96.5 | 95.6 | 101.4 | 93.4 |
| WV | 12 | 94.6 | 102.0 | 90.0 | 83.7 | 101.9 | 104.5 | 78.9 |
| WY | 35 | 103.7 | 105.7 | 99.7 | 105.1 | 102.5 | 104.7 | 100.9 |
| Cost of Living Indices for Participating Missouri Cities 4th Quarter 2001 | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| City | Composite | Grocery Items | Housing | Utilities | Transportation | Health Care | MISC |
| Columbia | 98.9 | 96.4 | 91.3 | 115.0 | 97.9 | 99.3 | 102.8 |
| Jefferson City | 91.4 | 94.5 | 78.9 | 89.7 | 98.0 | 91.2 | 99.1 |
| Joplin | 88.8 | 89.5 | 82.5 | 92.1 | 79.3 | 99.3 | 94.3 |
| Kansas City | 101.1 | 98.6 | 102.4 | 96.6 | 97.7 | 109.1 | 102.0 |
| Nevada | 88.4 | 85.6 | 92.4 | 84.1 | 78.2 | 80.4 | 91.6 |
| Springfield | 91.0 | 97.2 | 84.5 | 70.0 | 93.5 | 99.3 | 96.7 |
| St. Joseph | 95.3 | 95.0 | 90.3 | 99.1 | 87.2 | 98.1 | 100.9 |
| St. Louis | 99.7 | 93.9 | 94.2 | 103.0 | 106.7 | 102.6 | 103.9 |
| Missouri | 94.3 | 93.8 | 97.4 | 89.6 | 98.9 | 92.3 | 93.7 |
| US Average | 100.0 | 100.0 | 100.0 | 100.0 | 100.0 | 100.0 | 100.0 |
