Indianapolis, IN vs Houston, TX
Moving from Indianapolis to Houston? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($295,921 → $308,306 median home) and taxes.
Indianapolis vs Houston 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 Indianapolis, IN, you'd need about $105,371 in Houston, TX (+$5,371).
Livability — Indianapolis, IN: 71 · Houston, TX: 75 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 3,211 sqft in Indianapolis vs 3,406 sqft in Houston ($156 vs $147 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Indianapolis, IN | Houston, TX | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $18,636 | $19,668 | +$1,032 |
| Groceries | $4,740 | $5,085 | +$345 |
| Transportation | $3,250 | $3,675 | +$425 |
| Utilities | $1,932 | $1,836 | −$96 |
| Insurance | $1,600 | $3,600 | +$2,000 |
| Taxes | $7,367 | $7,399 | +$32 |
| Total | $37,525 | $41,263 | +$3,738 |
Side by side
| Metric | Indianapolis, IN | Houston, TX |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 94.7 | 99.7 |
| Unemployment rate | 4.28% | 5.96% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 6.1% | 7.6% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 55 | 63 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.39 | $5.67 |
| Median home price | $295,921 | $308,306 |
| Home price ÷ income | 4.0× | 3.9× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 1.3% | -2.0% |
| Price per square foot | $156 | $147 |
| Median rent | $1,553 | $1,639 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 9.3% | 8.6% |
| Combined sales tax | 7.00% | 8.20% |
| Capital gains tax | 3.05% | None |
| Property tax rate | 0.84% | 1.79% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,600 | $6,800 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $12,000 | $9,500 |
| Vehicle property tax | 1.20% | None |
| Avg commute (min) | 25 | 30 |
| Home insurance / yr | $1,600 | $3,600 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,400 | $2,100 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $600 | $900 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 17.9 | 17.0 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.30 | 3.00 |
| Violent crime /100k | 360 | 430 |
| Avg summer high °F | 86 | 96 |
| Avg winter low °F | 20 | 38 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 2 | 2 |