Indianapolis, IN vs Huntington, WV
Moving from Indianapolis to Huntington? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($295,921 → $166,506 median home) and taxes.
Indianapolis vs Huntington 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 $93,087 in Huntington, WV (−$6,913).
Livability — Indianapolis, IN: 71 · Huntington, WV: 77 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 3,211 sqft in Indianapolis vs 5,107 sqft in Huntington ($156 vs $98 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Indianapolis, IN | Huntington, WV | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $18,636 | $13,128 | −$5,508 |
| Groceries | $4,740 | $4,773 | +$33 |
| Transportation | $3,250 | $3,410 | +$160 |
| Utilities | $1,932 | $1,740 | −$192 |
| Insurance | $1,600 | $1,300 | −$300 |
| Taxes | $7,367 | $8,423 | +$1,056 |
| Total | $37,525 | $32,774 | −$4,751 |
Side by side
| Metric | Indianapolis, IN | Huntington, WV |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 94.7 | 88.1 |
| Unemployment rate | 4.28% | 5.32% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 6.1% | -0.4% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 55 | 44 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.39 | $5.01 |
| Median home price | $295,921 | $166,506 |
| Home price ÷ income | 4.0× | 3.0× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 1.3% | 0.5% |
| Price per square foot | $156 | $98 |
| Median rent | $1,553 | $1,094 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 9.3% | 9.8% |
| Combined sales tax | 7.00% | 6.55% |
| Capital gains tax | 3.05% | 5.12% |
| Property tax rate | 0.84% | 0.71% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,600 | $7,200 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $12,000 | $9,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | 1.20% | 1.66% |
| Avg commute (min) | 25 | 24 |
| Home insurance / yr | $1,600 | $1,300 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,400 | $1,700 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $600 | $650 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 17.9 | 16.1 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.30 | 3.30 |
| Violent crime /100k | 360 | 280 |
| Avg summer high °F | 86 | 84 |
| Avg winter low °F | 20 | 26 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 2 | 2 |