Baton Rouge, LA vs Baltimore, MD
Moving from Baton Rouge to Baltimore? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($248,176 → $405,877 median home) and taxes.
Baton Rouge vs Baltimore 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 Baton Rouge, LA, you'd need about $113,099 in Baltimore, MD (+$13,099).
Livability — Baton Rouge, LA: 69 · Baltimore, MD: 57 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 4,029 sqft in Baton Rouge vs 2,341 sqft in Baltimore ($124 vs $214 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Baton Rouge, LA | Baltimore, MD | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $16,716 | $23,028 | +$6,312 |
| Groceries | $4,650 | $5,075 | +$425 |
| Transportation | $4,475 | $3,685 | −$790 |
| Utilities | $1,560 | $2,388 | +$828 |
| Insurance | $3,500 | $1,400 | −$2,100 |
| Taxes | $8,854 | $11,584 | +$2,730 |
| Total | $39,755 | $47,160 | +$7,405 |
Side by side
| Metric | Baton Rouge, LA | Baltimore, MD |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 91.2 | 103.2 |
| Unemployment rate | 6.51% | 4.86% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 5.0% | 1.7% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 53 | 47 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.19 | $5.87 |
| Median home price | $248,176 | $405,877 |
| Home price ÷ income | 3.7× | 4.3× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 1.5% | 0.8% |
| Price per square foot | $124 | $214 |
| Median rent | $1,393 | $1,919 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 9.1% | 11.3% |
| Combined sales tax | 9.56% | 6.00% |
| Capital gains tax | 4.25% | 5.75% |
| Property tax rate | 0.56% | 1.04% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,600 | $7,200 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $8,000 | $16,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | 0.10% | None |
| Avg commute (min) | 27 | 30 |
| Home insurance / yr | $3,500 | $1,400 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $2,900 | $1,900 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $1,000 | $750 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 14.4 | 22.1 |
| Gas $/gal | 2.95 | 3.30 |
| Violent crime /100k | 630 | 450 |
| Avg summer high °F | 92 | 88 |
| Avg winter low °F | 43 | 27 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 2 | 4 |