COLI Q1 2014 Data Released

C2ER released the Cost of Living Index (COLI) first quarter 2014 report in late May. Among the 288 urban areas that participated in the First Quarter 2014 Cost of Living Index, the after-tax cost for a professional/managerial standard of living ranged from more than twice the national average in New York (Manhattan), NY to almost 19 percent below the national average in Norman, OK.

The quarterly data is based on more than 90,000 prices covering 60 different items.  Each item is part of one of six component categories – housing, utilities, grocery items, transportation, health care, and miscellaneous goods and services.  The composite category is made up of a specific percentage of each category.  These items are collected by a dedicated group of volunteers that include chambers of commerce, economic development organizations, and university applied economic centers.

Each quarter, C2ER sends out lists of the top ten least expensive and top ten most expensive communities in the U.S.  These findings are based on the data submitted to C2ER and are not meant to imply anything in the way of absolute values.

COLI 2014Q1Once known as the Inter-City Index Report, the data was collected by the federal government until 1960. After the government gave up the project, it was taken over by ACCRA, the American Chamber of Commerce Researchers Association, C2ER’s forbear.  Today, the Cost of Living Index remains the most reliable source of city-to-city comparisons of key consumer costs available anywhere, recognized by key organizations in statistics, government, and the media.

For additional information on the Cost of Living Index or other COLI-related products such as the COLI Web Calculator and the COLI Historical Index,  please contact Erol Yildirim at ey@crec.net.