Duluth, MN vs Kansas City, MO
Moving from Duluth to Kansas City? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($264,350 → $329,641 median home) and taxes.
Duluth vs Kansas City 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 Duluth, MN, you'd need about $106,907 in Kansas City, MO (+$6,907).
Livability — Duluth, MN: 68 · Kansas City, MO: 67 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 3,404 sqft in Duluth vs 2,654 sqft in Kansas City ($147 vs $188 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Duluth, MN | Kansas City, MO | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $16,572 | $18,576 | +$2,004 |
| Groceries | $4,846 | $4,828 | −$19 |
| Transportation | $3,375 | $3,390 | +$15 |
| Utilities | $1,776 | $1,512 | −$264 |
| Insurance | $2,200 | $2,400 | +$200 |
| Taxes | $14,852 | $10,526 | −$4,326 |
| Total | $43,621 | $41,232 | −$2,390 |
Side by side
| Metric | Duluth, MN | Kansas City, MO |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 87.2 | 93.2 |
| Unemployment rate | 4.41% | 4.18% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 4.4% | 4.9% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 42 | 42 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $4.96 | $5.30 |
| Median home price | $264,350 | $329,641 |
| Home price ÷ income | 3.9× | 4.2× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 6.6% | 3.5% |
| Price per square foot | $147 | $188 |
| Median rent | $1,381 | $1,548 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 12.1% | 9.3% |
| Combined sales tax | 8.10% | 8.38% |
| Capital gains tax | 9.85% | 4.80% |
| Property tax rate | 1.12% | 1.14% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,800 | $6,400 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $16,000 | $10,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | 1.58% | 2.55% |
| Avg commute (min) | 20 | 23 |
| Home insurance / yr | $2,200 | $2,400 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,600 | $1,800 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $600 | $750 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $400 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 16.4 | 14.0 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.15 | 3.00 |
| Natural gas / mo | $76 | $72 |
| Water & sewer / mo | $77 | $184 |
| Home internet / mo | $81 | $86 |
| Violent crime /100k | 280 | 490 |
| Avg summer high °F | 83 | 89 |
| Avg winter low °F | 4 | 22 |
| Annual precipitation (in) | 31.6 | 39.3 |
| Annual snowfall (in) | 51.2 | 18.2 |
| Sunshine (% possible) | 58% | 60% |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 3 | 2 |