Boston, MA vs Wichita, KS
Moving from Boston to Wichita? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($741,868 → $225,557 median home) and taxes.
Boston vs Wichita 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 Boston, MA, you'd need about $81,002 in Wichita, KS (−$18,998).
Livability — Boston, MA: 48 · Wichita, KS: 72 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 1,146 sqft in Boston vs 4,212 sqft in Wichita ($436 vs $119 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Boston, MA | Wichita, KS | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $38,532 | $14,412 | −$24,120 |
| Groceries | $5,040 | $4,824 | −$215 |
| Transportation | $3,210 | $3,275 | +$65 |
| Utilities | $3,180 | $1,704 | −$1,476 |
| Insurance | $1,800 | $3,300 | +$1,500 |
| Taxes | $17,694 | $11,043 | −$6,650 |
| Total | $69,455 | $38,558 | −$30,897 |
Side by side
| Metric | Boston, MA | Wichita, KS |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 110.4 | 89.4 |
| Unemployment rate | 5.02% | 5.05% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 2.9% | 0.7% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 43 | 47 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $6.28 | $5.09 |
| Median home price | $741,868 | $225,557 |
| Home price ÷ income | 6.9× | 3.4× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 1.6% | 3.7% |
| Price per square foot | $436 | $119 |
| Median rent | $3,211 | $1,201 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 11.5% | 11.2% |
| Combined sales tax | 6.25% | 8.70% |
| Capital gains tax | 9.00% | 5.70% |
| Property tax rate | 1.14% | 1.33% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $8,200 | $6,500 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $21,000 | $12,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | 2.25% | 1.93% |
| Avg commute (min) | 31 | 20 |
| Home insurance / yr | $1,800 | $3,300 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,500 | $1,700 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $800 | $650 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 29.4 | 15.8 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.30 | 3.00 |
| Violent crime /100k | 330 | 410 |
| Avg summer high °F | 82 | 92 |
| Avg winter low °F | 22 | 22 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 4 | 2 |