Anchorage, AK vs Chicago, IL
Moving from Anchorage to Chicago? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($422,103 → $353,998 median home) and taxes.
Anchorage vs Chicago 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 Anchorage, AK, you'd need about $95,987 in Chicago, IL (−$4,013).
Livability — Anchorage, AK: 49 · Chicago, IL: 63 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 2,132 sqft in Anchorage vs 2,402 sqft in Chicago ($235 vs $208 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Anchorage, AK | Chicago, IL | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $21,240 | $27,192 | +$5,952 |
| Groceries | $5,224 | $5,215 | −$8 |
| Transportation | $3,350 | $3,550 | +$200 |
| Utilities | $2,952 | $2,208 | −$744 |
| Insurance | $1,000 | $1,900 | +$900 |
| Taxes | $4,919 | $14,141 | +$9,222 |
| Total | $38,685 | $54,206 | +$15,522 |
Side by side
| Metric | Anchorage, AK | Chicago, IL |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 106.8 | 102.5 |
| Unemployment rate | 5.62% | 6.19% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | -0.0% | 0.2% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 42 | 42 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $6.08 | $5.83 |
| Median home price | $422,103 | $353,998 |
| Home price ÷ income | 4.5× | 4.2× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 5.7% | 4.4% |
| Price per square foot | $235 | $208 |
| Median rent | $1,770 | $2,266 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 4.6% | 12.9% |
| Combined sales tax | 1.82% | 8.86% |
| Capital gains tax | None | 4.95% |
| Property tax rate | 1.24% | 2.11% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $9,500 | $6,800 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $12,000 | $14,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | None | None |
| Avg commute (min) | 23 | 31 |
| Home insurance / yr | $1,000 | $1,900 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,300 | $1,600 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $650 | $700 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $800 | $300 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 27.4 | 20.5 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.90 | 3.60 |
| Natural gas / mo | $68 | $82 |
| Water & sewer / mo | $164 | $57 |
| Home internet / mo | $110 | $77 |
| Violent crime /100k | 760 | 430 |
| Avg summer high °F | 65 | 85 |
| Avg winter low °F | 5 | 15 |
| Annual precipitation (in) | 16.6 | 40.9 |
| Annual snowfall (in) | 74.0 | 38.8 |
| Sunshine (% possible) | 41% | 54% |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 2 | 4 |