Baltimore, MD vs Louisville/Jefferson County, KY
Moving from Baltimore to Louisville/Jefferson County? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($405,877 → $350,000 median home) and taxes.
Baltimore vs Louisville/Jefferson County 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 Baltimore, MD, you'd need about $90,316 in Louisville/Jefferson County, KY (−$9,684).
Livability — Baltimore, MD: 57 · Louisville/Jefferson County, KY: 72 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 2,341 sqft in Baltimore vs 2,500 sqft in Louisville/Jefferson County ($214 vs $200 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Baltimore, MD | Louisville/Jefferson County, KY | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $23,028 | $18,000 | −$5,028 |
| Groceries | $5,075 | $4,716 | −$359 |
| Transportation | $3,685 | $3,870 | +$185 |
| Utilities | $2,388 | $1,620 | −$768 |
| Insurance | $1,400 | $2,200 | +$800 |
| Taxes | $11,584 | $7,922 | −$3,662 |
| Total | $47,160 | $38,328 | −$8,832 |
Side by side
| Metric | Baltimore, MD | Louisville/Jefferson County, KY |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 103.2 | 93.2 |
| Unemployment rate | 4.86% | 4.66% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 1.7% | 0.3% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 47 | 51 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.87 | $5.30 |
| Median home price | $405,877 | $350,000 |
| Home price ÷ income | 4.3× | 5.0× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 0.8% | 3.0% |
| Price per square foot | $214 | $200 |
| Median rent | $1,919 | $1,500 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 11.3% | 9.6% |
| Combined sales tax | 6.00% | 6.00% |
| Capital gains tax | 5.75% | 4.00% |
| Property tax rate | 1.04% | 0.82% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $7,200 | $6,300 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $16,000 | $9,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | None | 1.44% |
| Avg commute (min) | 30 | 24 |
| Home insurance / yr | $1,400 | $2,200 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,900 | $2,200 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $750 | $700 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $250 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 22.1 | 15.0 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.30 | 3.10 |
| Violent crime /100k | 450 | 260 |
| Avg summer high °F | 88 | 88 |
| Avg winter low °F | 27 | 26 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 4 | 2 |