Ann Arbor, MI vs St. Louis, MO
Moving from Ann Arbor to St. Louis? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($422,945 → $276,878 median home) and taxes.
Ann Arbor vs St. Louis 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 Ann Arbor, MI, you'd need about $96,763 in St. Louis, MO (−$3,237).
Livability — Ann Arbor, MI: 61 · St. Louis, MO: 65 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 1,951 sqft in Ann Arbor vs 3,161 sqft in St. Louis ($256 vs $158 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Ann Arbor, MI | St. Louis, MO | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $24,816 | $17,412 | −$7,404 |
| Groceries | $4,703 | $4,934 | +$232 |
| Transportation | $4,575 | $3,390 | −$1,185 |
| Utilities | $2,316 | $1,512 | −$804 |
| Insurance | $1,300 | $2,400 | +$1,100 |
| Taxes | $11,605 | $10,488 | −$1,117 |
| Total | $49,315 | $40,136 | −$9,178 |
Side by side
| Metric | Ann Arbor, MI | St. Louis, MO |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 98.2 | 95.0 |
| Unemployment rate | 4.69% | 4.35% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 2.4% | 0.3% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 42 | 42 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.58 | $5.40 |
| Median home price | $422,945 | $276,878 |
| Home price ÷ income | 5.0× | 3.7× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 2.5% | 2.9% |
| Price per square foot | $256 | $158 |
| Median rent | $2,068 | $1,451 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 10.0% | 9.3% |
| Combined sales tax | 6.00% | 8.38% |
| Capital gains tax | 4.25% | 4.80% |
| Property tax rate | 1.56% | 1.26% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,500 | $6,400 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $11,000 | $10,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | 0.61% | 2.55% |
| Avg commute (min) | 24 | 25 |
| Home insurance / yr | $1,300 | $2,400 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $2,700 | $1,800 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $600 | $750 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $400 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 21.4 | 14.0 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.35 | 3.00 |
| Natural gas / mo | $78 | $72 |
| Water & sewer / mo | $74 | $184 |
| Home internet / mo | $78 | $86 |
| Violent crime /100k | 460 | 490 |
| Avg summer high °F | 83 | 89 |
| Avg winter low °F | 16 | 22 |
| Annual precipitation (in) | 37.6 | 41.7 |
| Annual snowfall (in) | 57.0 | 16.6 |
| Sunshine (% possible) | 53% | 57% |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 3 | 2 |