Fayetteville, AR vs Indianapolis, IN
Moving from Fayetteville to Indianapolis? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($368,497 → $295,921 median home) and taxes.
Fayetteville vs Indianapolis 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 Fayetteville, AR, you'd need about $103,499 in Indianapolis, IN (+$3,499).
Livability — Fayetteville, AR: 66 · Indianapolis, IN: 71 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 2,714 sqft in Fayetteville vs 3,211 sqft in Indianapolis ($184 vs $156 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Fayetteville, AR | Indianapolis, IN | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $19,128 | $18,636 | −$492 |
| Groceries | $4,655 | $4,740 | +$85 |
| Transportation | $3,405 | $3,250 | −$155 |
| Utilities | $1,524 | $1,932 | +$408 |
| Insurance | $2,800 | $1,600 | −$1,200 |
| Taxes | $8,682 | $7,367 | −$1,314 |
| Total | $40,193 | $37,525 | −$2,668 |
Side by side
| Metric | Fayetteville, AR | Indianapolis, IN |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 91.5 | 94.7 |
| Unemployment rate | 3.55% | 4.28% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 7.1% | 6.1% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 41 | 55 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.20 | $5.39 |
| Median home price | $368,497 | $295,921 |
| Home price ÷ income | 5.0× | 4.0× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 3.1% | 1.3% |
| Price per square foot | $184 | $156 |
| Median rent | $1,594 | $1,553 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 10.2% | 9.3% |
| Combined sales tax | 9.47% | 7.00% |
| Capital gains tax | 3.90% | 3.05% |
| Property tax rate | 0.60% | 0.84% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,000 | $6,600 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $7,500 | $12,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | 1.02% | 1.20% |
| Avg commute (min) | 21 | 25 |
| Home insurance / yr | $2,800 | $1,600 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,900 | $1,400 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $750 | $600 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $350 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 14.2 | 17.9 |
| Gas $/gal | 2.95 | 3.30 |
| Violent crime /100k | 640 | 360 |
| Avg summer high °F | 93 | 86 |
| Avg winter low °F | 30 | 20 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 2 | 2 |