Indianapolis, IN vs Philadelphia, PA
Moving from Indianapolis to Philadelphia? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($295,921 → $390,463 median home) and taxes.
Indianapolis vs Philadelphia 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 $108,149 in Philadelphia, PA (+$8,149).
Livability — Indianapolis, IN: 71 · Philadelphia, PA: 62 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 3,211 sqft in Indianapolis vs 2,241 sqft in Philadelphia ($156 vs $223 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Indianapolis, IN | Philadelphia, PA | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $18,636 | $22,968 | +$4,332 |
| Groceries | $4,740 | $4,909 | +$169 |
| Transportation | $3,250 | $3,440 | +$190 |
| Utilities | $1,932 | $2,316 | +$384 |
| Insurance | $1,600 | $1,200 | −$400 |
| Taxes | $7,367 | $10,192 | +$2,825 |
| Total | $37,525 | $45,025 | +$7,500 |
Side by side
| Metric | Indianapolis, IN | Philadelphia, PA |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 94.7 | 102.4 |
| Unemployment rate | 4.28% | 6.12% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 6.1% | 2.8% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 42 | 42 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.39 | $5.82 |
| Median home price | $295,921 | $390,463 |
| Home price ÷ income | 4.0× | 4.6× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 1.3% | 2.5% |
| Price per square foot | $156 | $223 |
| Median rent | $1,553 | $1,914 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 9.3% | 10.6% |
| Combined sales tax | 7.00% | 6.34% |
| Capital gains tax | 3.05% | 3.07% |
| Property tax rate | 0.84% | 1.61% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,600 | $7,000 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $12,000 | $12,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | 1.20% | None |
| Avg commute (min) | 25 | 29 |
| Home insurance / yr | $1,600 | $1,200 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,400 | $1,600 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $600 | $650 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 17.9 | 21.5 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.30 | 3.55 |
| Natural gas / mo | $72 | $82 |
| Water & sewer / mo | $102 | $65 |
| Home internet / mo | $81 | $78 |
| Violent crime /100k | 360 | 390 |
| Avg summer high °F | 86 | 85 |
| Avg winter low °F | 20 | 22 |
| Annual precipitation (in) | 43.6 | 44.1 |
| Annual snowfall (in) | 25.5 | 23.1 |
| Sunshine (% possible) | 55% | 56% |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 2 | 3 |