Fort Wayne, IN vs Jacksonville, FL
Moving from Fort Wayne to Jacksonville? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($259,816 → $352,994 median home) and taxes.
Fort Wayne vs Jacksonville 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 Fort Wayne, IN, you'd need about $111,028 in Jacksonville, FL (+$11,028).
Livability — Fort Wayne, IN: 72 · Jacksonville, FL: 69 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 3,658 sqft in Fort Wayne vs 2,621 sqft in Jacksonville ($137 vs $191 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Fort Wayne, IN | Jacksonville, FL | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $15,168 | $20,412 | +$5,244 |
| Groceries | $4,740 | $4,813 | +$73 |
| Transportation | $3,250 | $4,800 | +$1,550 |
| Utilities | $1,932 | $1,656 | −$276 |
| Insurance | $1,600 | $4,200 | +$2,600 |
| Taxes | $6,922 | $4,713 | −$2,209 |
| Total | $33,612 | $40,594 | +$6,982 |
Side by side
| Metric | Fort Wayne, IN | Jacksonville, FL |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 89.7 | 99.6 |
| Unemployment rate | 4.76% | 4.54% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | -2.2% | 11.4% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 47 | 51 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.11 | $5.67 |
| Median home price | $259,816 | $352,994 |
| Home price ÷ income | 3.9× | 4.8× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 2.9% | -1.7% |
| Price per square foot | $137 | $191 |
| Median rent | $1,264 | $1,701 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 9.3% | 9.1% |
| Combined sales tax | 7.00% | 7.02% |
| Capital gains tax | 3.05% | None |
| Property tax rate | 0.81% | 0.80% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,600 | $7,500 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $12,000 | $10,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | 1.20% | None |
| Avg commute (min) | 22 | 26 |
| Home insurance / yr | $1,600 | $4,200 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,400 | $2,900 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $600 | $1,400 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 17.9 | 15.4 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.30 | 3.35 |
| Violent crime /100k | 360 | 380 |
| Avg summer high °F | 86 | 91 |
| Avg winter low °F | 20 | 52 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 2 | 3 |