How does this affect online pricing? Assuming something bought online has the same price for all shipping locations, this would mean that people in expensive states are more likely to save money by shopping online?
Much of the difference is in land/home values, but, yes, it would mean that people in states like Hawaii would save more by shopping online. (This of course assumes that the online store doesn't pass along the increased transportation cost in the form of higher shipping.)
Alaska and Hawaii are pretty much outliers. Essentially everything is expensive whether it's at a local store or because of shipping surcharges. (Although Amazon Prime still covers both states--which I imagine is quite a big win for residents of those states compared to historically.)