Bloomington's cost of living is 6.6 percent less thhan the national average, according to a quarterly report from the Council for Community and Economic Research.
The index compares six everyday expenses – transportation, healthcare, grocery items, utilities, housing, and miscellaneous goods and services – from cities that have volunteered across each state. All eight Indiana cities scored below the national average, with Bloomington around the state average.
Bloomington had low housing and utilities costs compared to state and national averages. Bloomington Economic Development Corporation Project Manager Dana Palazzo says that's good news for the city.
"That's historical for us," Palazzo says. I think that Bloomington and Monroe County are kind of known for our low utilities cost, and that's ultimately, from the BEDC's perspective, that is what drives business to the area."
But Bloomington's transportation costs scored at least five points higher than any other Indiana city. Its health care costs were second highest, only behind Indianapolis.