Fargo, ND vs Nashville, TN
Moving from Fargo to Nashville? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($327,854 → $455,958 median home) and taxes.
Fargo vs Nashville 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 $108,851 in Nashville, TN (+$8,851).
Livability — Fargo, ND: 68 · Nashville, TN: 63 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 2,592 sqft in Fargo vs 2,193 sqft in Nashville ($193 vs $228 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Fargo, ND | Nashville, TN | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $13,872 | $21,576 | +$7,704 |
| Groceries | $4,850 | $4,715 | −$135 |
| Transportation | $3,130 | $3,130 | +$0 |
| Utilities | $1,332 | $1,608 | +$276 |
| Insurance | $2,100 | $2,200 | +$100 |
| Taxes | $8,083 | $5,231 | −$2,852 |
| Total | $33,367 | $38,459 | +$5,092 |
Side by side
| Metric | Fargo, ND | Nashville, TN |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 89.1 | 97.0 |
| Unemployment rate | 3.11% | 3.80% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 8.2% | 8.8% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 38 | 51 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.07 | $5.52 |
| Median home price | $327,854 | $455,958 |
| Home price ÷ income | 4.5× | 5.8× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 3.2% | -0.9% |
| Price per square foot | $193 | $228 |
| Median rent | $1,156 | $1,798 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 8.8% | 7.6% |
| Combined sales tax | 7.04% | 9.55% |
| Capital gains tax | 2.50% | None |
| Property tax rate | 1.20% | 0.55% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $7,000 | $6,300 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $10,000 | $9,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | None | None |
| Avg commute (min) | 18 | 28 |
| Home insurance / yr | $2,100 | $2,200 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,400 | $1,600 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $650 | $700 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $350 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 12.3 | 14.9 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.20 | 2.95 |
| Violent crime /100k | 290 | 600 |
| Avg summer high °F | 84 | 89 |
| Avg winter low °F | -2 | 30 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 2 | 2 |