Indianapolis, IN vs Syracuse, NY
Moving from Indianapolis to Syracuse? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($295,921 → $264,903 median home) and taxes.
Indianapolis vs Syracuse 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 $101,127 in Syracuse, NY (+$1,127).
Livability — Indianapolis, IN: 71 · Syracuse, NY: 61 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 3,211 sqft in Indianapolis vs 3,019 sqft in Syracuse ($156 vs $166 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Indianapolis, IN | Syracuse, NY | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $18,636 | $19,596 | +$960 |
| Groceries | $4,740 | $4,868 | +$128 |
| Transportation | $3,250 | $3,895 | +$645 |
| Utilities | $1,932 | $3,180 | +$1,248 |
| Insurance | $1,600 | $1,600 | +$0 |
| Taxes | $7,367 | $18,225 | +$10,858 |
| Total | $37,525 | $51,364 | +$13,839 |
Side by side
| Metric | Indianapolis, IN | Syracuse, NY |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 94.7 | 95.7 |
| Unemployment rate | 4.28% | 5.79% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 6.1% | -0.1% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 55 | 36 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.39 | $5.45 |
| Median home price | $295,921 | $264,903 |
| Home price ÷ income | 4.0× | 3.8× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 1.3% | 6.6% |
| Price per square foot | $156 | $166 |
| Median rent | $1,553 | $1,633 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 9.3% | 15.9% |
| Combined sales tax | 7.00% | 8.52% |
| Capital gains tax | 3.05% | 10.90% |
| Property tax rate | 0.84% | 2.64% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,600 | $7,800 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $12,000 | $17,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | 1.20% | None |
| Avg commute (min) | 25 | 21 |
| Home insurance / yr | $1,600 | $1,600 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,400 | $2,100 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $600 | $800 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 17.9 | 29.4 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.30 | 3.45 |
| Violent crime /100k | 360 | 350 |
| Avg summer high °F | 86 | 83 |
| Avg winter low °F | 20 | 16 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 2 | 5 |