The Council for Community and Economic Research lists the Northwest Arkansas area as the sixth least expensive metropolitan area to live in.
The Metropolitan Statistical Area encompasses Washington, Benton and Madison counties in Arkansas and McDonald County, Mo.
The after-tax cost for a professional/managerial standard of living ranged from more than twice the national average in New York City’s Manhatten to just over 20 percent below the national average in Harlingen, Texas among the 304 urban areas counted in the year end 2012 Cost of Living Index.
The 10 Least Expensive Urban Areas
- Harlingen, Texas
- McAllen, Texas
- Norman, Okla.
- Ardmore, Okla.
- Memphis
- Northwest Arkansas
- Wichita Falls, Texas
- Muskogee, Okla.
- Pueblo, Colo.
- Ashland, Ohio
The Ten Most Expensive Urban Areas
- New York, Manhattan
- New York, Brooklyn
- Honolulu
- San Francisco
- San Jose, Calif.
- New York, Queens
- Stamford, Conn.
- Washington D.C.
- Orange County, California
- Boston
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. It is based on more than 50,000 prices covering almost 60 different items for which prices are collected three times a year by chambers of commerce, economic development organizations or university applied economic centers in each participating urban area.
The composite index is based on six components: housing, utilities, grocery items, transportation, health care and miscellaneous goods and services.
