Fargo, ND vs Minneapolis, MN
Moving from Fargo to Minneapolis? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($327,854 → $393,774 median home) and taxes.
Fargo vs Minneapolis 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 Fargo, ND, you'd need about $117,016 in Minneapolis, MN (+$17,016).
Livability — Fargo, ND: 68 · Minneapolis, MN: 54 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 2,592 sqft in Fargo vs 2,285 sqft in Minneapolis ($193 vs $219 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Fargo, ND | Minneapolis, MN | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $13,872 | $20,652 | +$6,780 |
| Groceries | $4,850 | $5,227 | +$377 |
| Transportation | $3,130 | $3,375 | +$245 |
| Utilities | $1,332 | $1,776 | +$444 |
| Insurance | $2,100 | $2,200 | +$100 |
| Taxes | $8,083 | $16,345 | +$8,262 |
| Total | $33,367 | $49,575 | +$16,208 |
Side by side
| Metric | Fargo, ND | Minneapolis, MN |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 89.1 | 104.3 |
| Unemployment rate | 3.11% | 3.90% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 8.2% | 4.3% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 42 | 42 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.07 | $5.93 |
| Median home price | $327,854 | $393,774 |
| Home price ÷ income | 4.5× | 4.2× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 3.2% | 2.1% |
| Price per square foot | $193 | $219 |
| Median rent | $1,156 | $1,721 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 8.8% | 12.1% |
| Combined sales tax | 7.04% | 8.10% |
| Capital gains tax | 2.50% | 9.85% |
| Property tax rate | 1.20% | 1.10% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $7,000 | $6,800 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $10,000 | $16,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | None | 1.58% |
| Avg commute (min) | 18 | 25 |
| Home insurance / yr | $2,100 | $2,200 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,400 | $1,600 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $650 | $600 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 12.3 | 16.4 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.20 | 3.15 |
| Natural gas / mo | $62 | $76 |
| Water & sewer / mo | $70 | $77 |
| Home internet / mo | $88 | $81 |
| Violent crime /100k | 290 | 280 |
| Avg summer high °F | 84 | 83 |
| Avg winter low °F | -2 | 4 |
| Annual precipitation (in) | 22.6 | 31.6 |
| Annual snowfall (in) | 50.0 | 51.2 |
| Sunshine (% possible) | 57% | 58% |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 2 | 3 |