Jackson, MS vs Baltimore, MD
Moving from Jackson to Baltimore? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($215,136 → $405,877 median home) and taxes.
Jackson vs Baltimore 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 Jackson, MS, you'd need about $114,857 in Baltimore, MD (+$14,857).
Livability — Jackson, MS: 76 · Baltimore, MD: 57 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 4,766 sqft in Jackson vs 2,341 sqft in Baltimore ($105 vs $214 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Jackson, MS | Baltimore, MD | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $17,400 | $23,028 | +$5,628 |
| Groceries | $4,722 | $5,075 | +$353 |
| Transportation | $3,410 | $3,685 | +$275 |
| Utilities | $1,812 | $2,388 | +$576 |
| Insurance | $3,100 | $1,400 | −$1,700 |
| Taxes | $8,536 | $11,584 | +$3,049 |
| Total | $38,980 | $47,160 | +$8,180 |
Side by side
| Metric | Jackson, MS | Baltimore, MD |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 89.8 | 103.2 |
| Unemployment rate | 6.03% | 4.86% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 2.2% | 1.7% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 42 | 42 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.11 | $5.87 |
| Median home price | $215,136 | $405,877 |
| Home price ÷ income | 3.6× | 4.3× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 2.4% | 0.8% |
| Price per square foot | $105 | $214 |
| Median rent | $1,450 | $1,919 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 9.8% | 11.3% |
| Combined sales tax | 7.07% | 6.00% |
| Capital gains tax | 4.70% | 5.75% |
| Property tax rate | 0.77% | 1.04% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,300 | $7,200 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $6,000 | $16,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | 3.42% | None |
| Avg commute (min) | 25 | 30 |
| Home insurance / yr | $3,100 | $1,400 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,900 | $1,900 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $900 | $750 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 16.8 | 22.1 |
| Gas $/gal | 2.90 | 3.30 |
| Natural gas / mo | $58 | $88 |
| Water & sewer / mo | $93 | $106 |
| Home internet / mo | $75 | $82 |
| Violent crime /100k | 280 | 450 |
| Avg summer high °F | 92 | 88 |
| Avg winter low °F | 38 | 27 |
| Annual precipitation (in) | 54.9 | 45.0 |
| Annual snowfall (in) | 2.7 | 19.3 |
| Sunshine (% possible) | 64% | 57% |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 2 | 4 |