Albuquerque, NM vs Indianapolis, IN
Moving from Albuquerque to Indianapolis? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($352,894 → $295,921 median home) and taxes.
Albuquerque vs Indianapolis at a glance
Bars scaled to the range across all 200 metros; labels show actual values.
To keep the same standard of living as $100,000 in Albuquerque, NM, you'd need about $101,093 in Indianapolis, IN (+$1,093).
Livability — Albuquerque, NM: 60 · Indianapolis, IN: 71 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 2,621 sqft in Albuquerque vs 3,211 sqft in Indianapolis ($191 vs $156 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Albuquerque, NM | Indianapolis, IN | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $18,024 | $18,636 | +$612 |
| Groceries | $4,871 | $4,740 | −$131 |
| Transportation | $3,260 | $3,250 | −$10 |
| Utilities | $1,632 | $1,932 | +$300 |
| Insurance | $1,900 | $1,600 | −$300 |
| Taxes | $10,881 | $7,367 | −$3,514 |
| Total | $40,568 | $37,525 | −$3,043 |
Side by side
| Metric | Albuquerque, NM | Indianapolis, IN |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 93.6 | 94.7 |
| Unemployment rate | 5.69% | 4.28% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 1.2% | 6.1% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 61 | 55 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.33 | $5.39 |
| Median home price | $352,894 | $295,921 |
| Home price ÷ income | 5.5× | 4.0× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 1.0% | 1.3% |
| Price per square foot | $191 | $156 |
| Median rent | $1,502 | $1,553 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 10.2% | 9.3% |
| Combined sales tax | 7.78% | 7.00% |
| Capital gains tax | 5.90% | 3.05% |
| Property tax rate | 0.93% | 0.84% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,400 | $6,600 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $10,000 | $12,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | None | 1.20% |
| Avg commute (min) | 24 | 25 |
| Home insurance / yr | $1,900 | $1,600 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,600 | $1,400 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $550 | $600 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 15.2 | 17.9 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.20 | 3.30 |
| Violent crime /100k | 780 | 360 |
| Avg summer high °F | 92 | 86 |
| Avg winter low °F | 25 | 20 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 3 | 2 |