Kentucky vs Ohio: cost of living compared
Statewide price levels and incomes from BEA (2024); gas prices from EIA (weekly).
Is it cheaper to live in Kentucky or Ohio?
- Overall, Ohio is 2.9% more expensive than Kentucky (BEA, 2024).
- To keep the same standard of living, $75,000 in Kentucky works out to about $77,200 in Ohio, before taxes.
- Most of the difference is housing, which costs 13.5% more in Ohio. Goods are 2.4% lower and other services 1.7% higher.
- Utility prices (electricity, gas, water) are 27.2% higher in Ohio.
- After adjusting for local prices, personal income per person is $56,232 in Ohio and $52,290 in Kentucky (7.5% higher in Ohio; BEA, 2024, in 2017 dollars).
- Inside each state, metro price levels run from 87.4 in Youngstown, OH to 95.5 in Columbus, OH (Ohio) and from 86.1 in Paducah, KY to 93.1 in Louisville, KY (Kentucky), US = 100.
- The gap is about where it was in 2019 (4.1%).
derived Calculated from BEA Regional Price Parities and real personal income by state. Statewide averages mix cities and rural areas; taxes are not included. How we calculate.
Category by category
Both states against the US average (100).
Housing drives the gap: 13.5% higher in Ohio than in Kentucky
Price level by category, 2024. US average = 100.
- Kentucky
- Ohio
Source: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities by metropolitan area, 2024 (US = 100).
Show the numbers
| Kentucky | Ohio | |
|---|---|---|
| All items | 90.2 | 92.8 |
| Goods | 96.0 | 93.7 |
| Housing (rents) | 64.3 | 73.0 |
| Utilities | 75.3 | 95.8 |
| Other services | 97.3 | 98.9 |
| Category | Kentucky | Ohio | Ohio vs Kentucky |
|---|---|---|---|
| All items | 90.2 | 92.8 | +2.9% |
| Goods | 96.0 | 93.7 | −2.4% |
| Housing (rents) | 64.3 | 73.0 | +13.5% |
| Utilities | 75.3 | 95.8 | +27.2% |
| Other services | 97.3 | 98.9 | +1.7% |
| Income per person, adjusted for prices | $52,290 | $56,232 | +7.5% |
| Regular gas, week of October 19, 2026* | $4.14 | $4.05 | −2.3% |
| Salary to match $75,000 in Kentucky | $75,000 | $77,200 | +2.9% |
Index values: BEA, 2024, US = 100. Income: BEA real personal income per person, 2017 dollars. Gas: EIA weekly retail prices. *Midwest region average (EIA has no separate Kentucky figure).
Cheapest and most expensive places in each state
Kentucky
- Paducah, KY 86.1
- Huntington, WV 88.4
- Owensboro, KY 88.6
- Bowling Green, KY 90.2
- Elizabethtown, KY 90.6
- Clarksville, TN 90.9
- Lexington, KY 92.9
- Louisville, KY 93.1
- Cincinnati, OH 95.4
Ohio
- Youngstown, OH 87.4
- Wheeling, WV 88.3
- Huntington, WV 88.4
- Mansfield, OH 88.9
- Weirton, WV 89.0
- Sandusky, OH 89.3
- Canton, OH 89.4
- Lima, OH 89.7
- Springfield, OH 90.5
- Toledo, OH 91.5
- Dayton, OH 92.7
- Akron, OH 93.4
- Cleveland, OH 93.9
- Cincinnati, OH 95.4
- Columbus, OH 95.5
Metro areas ordered from cheapest to most expensive. BEA, 2024, US = 100.
How the gap has changed since 2008
The price gap between Kentucky and Ohio has been fairly stable since 2008
Overall price level each year, 2008–2024. US average = 100.
- Kentucky
- Ohio
Source: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities by state, 2024 (US = 100).
Show the numbers
| Kentucky | Ohio | |
|---|---|---|
| 2008 | 89.8 | 92.5 |
| 2009 | 88.5 | 93.5 |
| 2010 | 90.4 | 93.1 |
| 2011 | 90.5 | 92.2 |
| 2012 | 90.7 | 93.0 |
| 2013 | 90.9 | 93.3 |
| 2014 | 91.1 | 93.0 |
| 2015 | 90.7 | 92.2 |
| 2016 | 90.7 | 92.3 |
| 2017 | 90.0 | 91.9 |
| 2018 | 89.1 | 93.0 |
| 2019 | 89.6 | 93.3 |
| 2020 | 89.1 | 91.9 |
| 2021 | 89.2 | 92.2 |
| 2022 | 89.4 | 91.5 |
| 2023 | 89.9 | 91.9 |
| 2024 | 90.2 | 92.8 |
Goods
- Kentucky
- Ohio
Source: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities by state, 2024 (US = 100).
Show the numbers
| Kentucky | Ohio | |
|---|---|---|
| 2008 | 96.3 | 92.3 |
| 2009 | 93.5 | 94.0 |
| 2010 | 96.6 | 94.4 |
| 2011 | 95.4 | 94.7 |
| 2012 | 94.0 | 96.2 |
| 2013 | 95.0 | 97.0 |
| 2014 | 95.1 | 97.2 |
| 2015 | 94.2 | 96.7 |
| 2016 | 95.4 | 96.1 |
| 2017 | 94.6 | 95.3 |
| 2018 | 93.3 | 97.3 |
| 2019 | 94.9 | 95.8 |
| 2020 | 94.3 | 93.9 |
| 2021 | 94.0 | 94.5 |
| 2022 | 94.1 | 92.4 |
| 2023 | 94.5 | 94.2 |
| 2024 | 96.0 | 93.7 |
Housing (rents)
- Kentucky
- Ohio
Source: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities by state, 2024 (US = 100).
Show the numbers
| Kentucky | Ohio | |
|---|---|---|
| 2008 | 64.2 | 77.1 |
| 2009 | 64.8 | 76.1 |
| 2010 | 66.6 | 76.3 |
| 2011 | 64.6 | 75.6 |
| 2012 | 66.2 | 76.3 |
| 2013 | 66.1 | 77.6 |
| 2014 | 65.5 | 75.5 |
| 2015 | 66.3 | 75.6 |
| 2016 | 64.3 | 75.1 |
| 2017 | 63.7 | 75.0 |
| 2018 | 64.7 | 74.2 |
| 2019 | 64.3 | 73.5 |
| 2020 | 64.8 | 73.3 |
| 2021 | 63.4 | 72.8 |
| 2022 | 62.2 | 72.8 |
| 2023 | 62.9 | 72.1 |
| 2024 | 64.3 | 73.0 |
Utilities
- Kentucky
- Ohio
Source: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities by state, 2024 (US = 100).
Show the numbers
| Kentucky | Ohio | |
|---|---|---|
| 2008 | 73.5 | 98.8 |
| 2009 | 73.7 | 99.7 |
| 2010 | 75.4 | 94.2 |
| 2011 | 79.0 | 93.1 |
| 2012 | 82.4 | 93.4 |
| 2013 | 82.7 | 95.0 |
| 2014 | 85.4 | 91.9 |
| 2015 | 85.8 | 91.3 |
| 2016 | 85.7 | 88.5 |
| 2017 | 85.6 | 89.0 |
| 2018 | 79.2 | 94.5 |
| 2019 | 77.5 | 90.7 |
| 2020 | 76.2 | 91.3 |
| 2021 | 79.7 | 91.9 |
| 2022 | 81.8 | 87.6 |
| 2023 | 80.9 | 89.2 |
| 2024 | 75.3 | 95.8 |
Other services
- Kentucky
- Ohio
Source: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities by state, 2024 (US = 100).
Show the numbers
| Kentucky | Ohio | |
|---|---|---|
| 2008 | 97.6 | 97.8 |
| 2009 | 96.6 | 99.1 |
| 2010 | 97.4 | 98.1 |
| 2011 | 98.7 | 96.1 |
| 2012 | 99.2 | 96.4 |
| 2013 | 99.1 | 96.0 |
| 2014 | 99.1 | 96.1 |
| 2015 | 98.5 | 94.8 |
| 2016 | 98.4 | 95.8 |
| 2017 | 97.3 | 95.4 |
| 2018 | 96.3 | 96.3 |
| 2019 | 96.9 | 98.5 |
| 2020 | 96.4 | 97.5 |
| 2021 | 96.5 | 97.5 |
| 2022 | 97.0 | 97.7 |
| 2023 | 97.9 | 97.5 |
| 2024 | 97.3 | 98.9 |
What incomes buy in each state
Income per person after adjusting for prices: $56,232 in Ohio, $52,290 in Kentucky
Real personal income per person, constant 2017 dollars (adjusted for each state's price level and for inflation).
- Kentucky
- Ohio
- United States
Source: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, real personal income by state (SARPI), 2008–2024.
Show the numbers
| Kentucky | Ohio | United States | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | $41,015 | $44,461 | $45,816 |
| 2009 | $40,948 | $42,867 | $44,204 |
| 2010 | $40,600 | $43,467 | $44,808 |
| 2011 | $41,282 | $45,562 | $45,957 |
| 2012 | $41,617 | $45,869 | $46,796 |
| 2013 | $41,126 | $45,680 | $46,358 |
| 2014 | $42,144 | $46,857 | $47,661 |
| 2015 | $43,986 | $48,895 | $49,396 |
| 2016 | $44,214 | $49,223 | $49,828 |
| 2017 | $45,005 | $50,280 | $51,006 |
| 2018 | $45,925 | $50,500 | $52,242 |
| 2019 | $46,956 | $51,249 | $53,683 |
| 2020 | $50,641 | $55,074 | $56,514 |
| 2021 | $53,512 | $57,339 | $59,365 |
| 2022 | $50,765 | $54,882 | $57,104 |
| 2023 | $51,428 | $55,789 | $58,088 |
| 2024 | $52,290 | $56,232 | $59,195 |
More
- Cost of living in Kentucky
- Cost of living in Ohio
- Reverse: moving from Ohio to Kentucky
- All states ranked
Related state comparisons
What this comparison leaves out
- Taxes. State income, sales and property taxes differ a lot between states and are not included.
- Where you live inside the state. Statewide figures average cities and rural areas; the metro lists above show the spread.
- Your own spending mix. The default uses an average household. Use the housing slider if housing is a bigger share of your budget.
- Timing. BEA price levels and incomes are for 2024; gas prices are weekly.