Denver, CO vs Louisville/Jefferson County, KY
Moving from Denver to Louisville/Jefferson County? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($573,221 → $350,000 median home) and taxes.
Denver 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 Denver, CO, you'd need about $88,110 in Louisville/Jefferson County, KY (−$11,890).
Livability — Denver, CO: 52 · Louisville/Jefferson County, KY: 72 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 1,657 sqft in Denver vs 2,500 sqft in Louisville/Jefferson County ($302 vs $200 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Denver, CO | Louisville/Jefferson County, KY | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $22,920 | $18,000 | −$4,920 |
| Groceries | $5,079 | $4,716 | −$363 |
| Transportation | $4,050 | $3,870 | −$180 |
| Utilities | $1,788 | $1,620 | −$168 |
| Insurance | $2,800 | $2,200 | −$600 |
| Taxes | $9,828 | $7,922 | −$1,905 |
| Total | $46,464 | $38,328 | −$8,137 |
Side by side
| Metric | Denver, CO | Louisville/Jefferson County, KY |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 105.8 | 93.2 |
| Unemployment rate | 4.26% | 4.66% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 5.7% | 0.3% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 64 | 51 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $6.02 | $5.30 |
| Median home price | $573,221 | $350,000 |
| Home price ÷ income | 5.9× | 5.0× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | -2.9% | 3.0% |
| Price per square foot | $302 | $200 |
| Median rent | $1,910 | $1,500 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 9.7% | 9.6% |
| Combined sales tax | 7.77% | 6.00% |
| Capital gains tax | 4.40% | 4.00% |
| Property tax rate | 0.52% | 0.82% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,800 | $6,300 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $16,000 | $9,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | 1.79% | 1.44% |
| Avg commute (min) | 28 | 24 |
| Home insurance / yr | $2,800 | $2,200 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $2,000 | $2,200 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $550 | $700 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $250 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 16.5 | 15.0 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.30 | 3.10 |
| Violent crime /100k | 490 | 260 |
| Avg summer high °F | 88 | 88 |
| Avg winter low °F | 18 | 26 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 3 | 2 |