Chicago, IL vs Fort Smith, AR
Moving from Chicago to Fort Smith? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($353,998 → $205,554 median home) and taxes.
Chicago vs Fort Smith 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 Chicago, IL, you'd need about $83,242 in Fort Smith, AR (−$16,758).
Livability — Chicago, IL: 63 · Fort Smith, AR: 73 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 2,402 sqft in Chicago vs 4,864 sqft in Fort Smith ($208 vs $103 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Chicago, IL | Fort Smith, AR | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $27,192 | $12,252 | −$14,940 |
| Groceries | $5,215 | $4,657 | −$559 |
| Transportation | $3,550 | $3,405 | −$145 |
| Utilities | $2,208 | $1,524 | −$684 |
| Insurance | $1,900 | $2,800 | +$900 |
| Taxes | $14,141 | $8,127 | −$6,014 |
| Total | $54,206 | $32,764 | −$21,442 |
Side by side
| Metric | Chicago, IL | Fort Smith, AR |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 102.5 | 85.3 |
| Unemployment rate | 6.19% | 5.23% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 0.2% | -12.6% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 56 | 44 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.83 | $4.85 |
| Median home price | $353,998 | $205,554 |
| Home price ÷ income | 4.2× | 3.9× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 4.4% | 4.6% |
| Price per square foot | $208 | $103 |
| Median rent | $2,266 | $1,021 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 12.9% | 10.2% |
| Combined sales tax | 8.86% | 9.47% |
| Capital gains tax | 4.95% | 3.90% |
| Property tax rate | 2.11% | 0.62% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,800 | $6,000 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $14,000 | $7,500 |
| Vehicle property tax | None | 1.02% |
| Avg commute (min) | 31 | 22 |
| Home insurance / yr | $1,900 | $2,800 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,600 | $1,900 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $700 | $750 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $300 | $350 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 20.5 | 14.2 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.60 | 2.95 |
| Violent crime /100k | 430 | 640 |
| Avg summer high °F | 85 | 93 |
| Avg winter low °F | 15 | 30 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 4 | 2 |