Big Sky Times

The purchasing power of a dollar in Montana, based on the cost of living and other factors in the state, is $1.06, according to a state-by-state ranking of the dollar’s value by the website 24/7 Wall St.

The buying power of a dollar in Montana is the 24th highest among the 50 states, 24/7 Wall St. reported. Goods and services in relatively poorer states tend to be less expensive than in states that are home to large, wealthy metropolitan areas, according to the analysis.

Each state’s dollar value was estimated by dividing 100 (the dollar’s base value) by estimates for regional price parity, based on the Bureau of Economic Analysis’ 2016 data, the most recent numbers available.

Montana has a personal income per capita of $47,120. That figure was divided by the state’s price parity number to ascertain the effective personal income of residents on average – $45,041.

The median home value in the state, $231,300, reflects the 2016 U.S. Census Bureau’s American Consumer Survey.

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States Where a Dollar Goes the Furthest

Rank	State	Value of Dollar	Personal Income Per Capita	Income Adjusted by Cost of Living	Median Home Value
1	Mississippi	$1.16	$37,994	$39,901	$120,200
2 (tie)	Alabama	$1.15	$42,334	$43,684	$141,300
2 (tie)	Arkansas	$1.15	$42,566	$44,018	$128,500
3 (tie)	Kentucky	$1.14	$41,779	$43,273	$141,000
3 (tie)	West Virginia	$1.14	$40,578	$40,619	$119,800
6	South Dakota	$1.13	$50,141	$52,855	$167,600
7 (tie)	Missouri	$1.12	$46,635	$46,893	$156,700
7 (tie)	Ohio	$1.12	$48,242	$48,699	$144,200
7 (tie)	Oklahoma	$1.12	$46,128	$45,548	$137,400
10 (tie)	Indiana	$1.11	$46,646	$46,444	$141,100
10 (tie)	Iowa	$1.11	$48,823	$49,485	$149,100
10 (tie)	Louisiana	$1.11	$45,542	$45,363	$162,500
10 (tie)	South Carolina	$1.11	$42,736	$42,958	$161,800
10 (tie)	Tennessee	$1.11	$47,179	$46,885	$167,500
15 (tie)	Kansas	$1.10	$50,155	$50,504	$150,600
15 (tie)	Nebraska	$1.10	$52,110	$52,833	$155,800
15 (tie)	North Carolina	$1.10	$45,834	$45,216	$171,200
18 (tie)	Georgia	$1.09	$45,745	$44,525	$173,700
18 (tie)	North Dakota	$1.09	$54,306	$55,364	$194,700
20 (tie)	Idaho	$1.08	$43,155	$41,912	$207,100
20 (tie)	Wisconsin	$1.08	$50,756	$49,211	$178,900
22 (tie)	Michigan	$1.07	$47,582	$46,186	$155,700
22 (tie)	New Mexico	$1.07	$41,198	$40,049	$171,300
24	Montana	$1.06	$47,120	$45,041	$231,300
25	Arizona	$1.04	$43,650	$40,814	$223,400
26 (tie)	Minnesota	$1.03	$56,374	$52,075	$224,000
26 (tie)	Nevada	$1.03	$48,225	$43,972	$258,200
26 (tie)	Texas	$1.03	$49,161	$45,823	$172,200
26 (tie)	Wyoming	$1.03	$60,095	$55,183	$214,300
26 (tie)	Utah	$1.03	$45,340	$41,706	$275,100
31 (tie)	Maine	$1.02	$48,241	$43,817	$191,200
31 (tie)	Pennsylvania	$1.02	$55,349	$50,276	$181,200
33	Illinois	$1.01	$56,933	$51,070	$195,300
34 (tie)	Delaware	$1.00	$51,449	$46,305	$252,800
34 (tie)	Florida	$1.00	$49,417	$44,541	$214,000
34 (tie)	Oregon	$1.00	$49,908	$44,778	$319,200
34 (tie)	Rhode Island	$1.00	$54,523	$49,114	$257,800
38 (tie)	Vermont	$0.98	$53,598	$47,971	$226,300
38 (tie)	Virginia	$0.98	$56,952	$50,184	$273,400
40	Colorado	$0.97	$56,846	$48,963	$348,900
41 (tie)	Alaska	$0.95	$59,687	$51,079	$273,100
41 (tie)	Washington	$0.95	$60,781	$50,640	$339,000
43	New Hampshire	$0.94	$61,405	$51,929	$263,600
44	Massachusetts	$0.93	$70,073	$58,221	$385,400
45	Connecticut	$0.92	$74,561	$61,600	$273,100
46	Maryland	$0.91	$62,914	$51,645	$312,500
47	New Jersey	$0.88	$67,609	$52,651	$334,900
48 (tie)	California	$0.87	$62,586	$48,384	$509,400
48 (tie)	New York	$0.87	$68,667	$50,709	$314,500
50	Hawaii	$0.84	$54,565	$41,353	$617,400

Source: 24/7 Wall St.