Hickory, NC vs Indianapolis, IN
Moving from Hickory to Indianapolis? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($271,739 → $295,921 median home) and taxes.
Hickory 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 Hickory, NC, you'd need about $105,903 in Indianapolis, IN (+$5,903).
Livability — Hickory, NC: 73 · Indianapolis, IN: 71 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 3,679 sqft in Hickory vs 3,211 sqft in Indianapolis ($136 vs $156 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Hickory, NC | Indianapolis, IN | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $17,952 | $18,636 | +$684 |
| Groceries | $4,840 | $4,740 | −$100 |
| Transportation | $3,130 | $3,250 | +$120 |
| Utilities | $1,752 | $1,932 | +$180 |
| Insurance | $2,000 | $1,600 | −$400 |
| Taxes | $7,879 | $7,367 | −$512 |
| Total | $37,553 | $37,525 | −$28 |
Side by side
| Metric | Hickory, NC | Indianapolis, IN |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 89.4 | 94.7 |
| Unemployment rate | 5.52% | 4.28% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 0.5% | 6.1% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 42 | 42 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.09 | $5.39 |
| Median home price | $271,739 | $295,921 |
| Home price ÷ income | 4.7× | 4.0× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 2.3% | 1.3% |
| Price per square foot | $136 | $156 |
| Median rent | $1,496 | $1,553 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 9.9% | 9.3% |
| Combined sales tax | 6.98% | 7.00% |
| Capital gains tax | 4.25% | 3.05% |
| Property tax rate | 0.69% | 0.84% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,600 | $6,600 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $10,000 | $12,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | 1.10% | 1.20% |
| Avg commute (min) | 24 | 25 |
| Home insurance / yr | $2,000 | $1,600 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,400 | $1,400 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $800 | $600 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 16.3 | 17.9 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.20 | 3.30 |
| Natural gas / mo | $62 | $72 |
| Water & sewer / mo | $78 | $102 |
| Home internet / mo | $80 | $81 |
| Violent crime /100k | 400 | 360 |
| Avg summer high °F | 89 | 86 |
| Avg winter low °F | 30 | 20 |
| Annual precipitation (in) | 43.6 | 43.6 |
| Annual snowfall (in) | 5.2 | 25.5 |
| Sunshine (% possible) | 58% | 55% |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 3 | 2 |