Altoona → Great Falls
Relocation analysis based on 7 federal data sources
Should you move?
Moving from Altoona to Great Falls is neutral, depends on priorities: BEA regional price parity goes from 89.5 to 96.8 (US = 100), and HUD 2-bedroom rent rises by $146/mo.
- +$3,231
- BLS median salary higher in Great Falls
- 250 to 426
- violent crimes per 100K (FBI UCR, state-level)
- 13.6:1 to 11.8:1
- NCES student-teacher ratio
BEA Regional Price Parity, HUD Fair Market Rent, BLS OEWS, FBI UCR, NCES, and DOL. The table below lets you override the composite with your own priorities.
Pros of Moving
- + $3K higher median salary
- + Better student-teacher ratios
- + Fewer environmental violations
Cons of Moving
- - 7% higher cost of living
- - $146/mo more expensive rent (2BR)
- - Higher violent crime rate
Purchasing power tightens: BEA RPP rises from 89.5 to 96.8, so the same paycheck buys less in Great Falls (ratio 1.08). HUD 2BR Fair Market Rent rises $146/mo ($1,752/yr) from $1,138 in Altoona to $1,284 in Great Falls.
The seven-dimension ledger splits (3 destination wins · 3 origin wins); priorities decide this move. Great Falls sits #315 of 387 metros on PlainRelocate livability (bottom third of the corpus). Altoona is #41/387 on the same ranking. Composite verdict: Neutral, depends on priorities. Override it with the dimension table below.
BLS OEWS median salary moves $3,231 higher ($57,335 → $60,566). Labor-market size: 52,800 tracked jobs at origin vs 31,100 at destination.
State retirement friendliness favors staying put: Pennsylvania scores 65 (C, #18/51) vs Montana at 53 (D, #38/51). Full state tax and healthcare sub-scores sit in the retirement desk below.
State retirement friendliness
Primary-state scores from PlainRelocate's retirement registry (tax + healthcare + climate composite). Metro pairs use each metro's primary state abbreviation.
- Income tax
- 95
- Property tax
- 58
- Estate tax
- 100
- Healthcare
- 72
- Income tax
- 62
- Property tax
- 68
- Estate tax
- 100
- Healthcare
- 82
Full retirement ranking · Source composite documented on methodology (Tax Foundation + AARP tax guides + federal healthcare/climate inputs).
Salary Adjustment Calculator
Enter your current salary in Altoona to see what you'd need to earn in Great Falls to maintain the same purchasing power.
Great Falls metro profile · Livability rankings · Methodology
Source: BEA Regional Price Parities, HUD Fair Market Rents, BLS OES, FBI UCR, NCES, DOL, EPA; retirement desk: Tax Foundation + AARP tax guides June 2026