Kansas City, MO vs Atlantic City, NJ
Moving from Kansas City to Atlantic City? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($329,641 → $384,211 median home) and taxes.
Kansas City vs Atlantic City 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 Kansas City, MO, you'd need about $106,118 in Atlantic City, NJ (+$6,118).
Livability — Kansas City, MO: 67 · Atlantic City, NJ: 61 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 2,654 sqft in Kansas City vs 2,473 sqft in Atlantic City ($188 vs $202 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Kansas City, MO | Atlantic City, NJ | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $18,576 | $25,812 | +$7,236 |
| Groceries | $4,828 | $4,888 | +$60 |
| Transportation | $3,390 | $3,710 | +$320 |
| Utilities | $1,512 | $2,544 | +$1,032 |
| Insurance | $2,400 | $1,300 | −$1,100 |
| Taxes | $10,526 | $19,743 | +$9,217 |
| Total | $41,232 | $57,997 | +$16,765 |
Side by side
| Metric | Kansas City, MO | Atlantic City, NJ |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 93.2 | 98.9 |
| Unemployment rate | 4.18% | 8.29% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 4.9% | 0.5% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 53 | 35 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.30 | $5.63 |
| Median home price | $329,641 | $384,211 |
| Home price ÷ income | 4.2× | 5.3× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 3.5% | 3.9% |
| Price per square foot | $188 | $202 |
| Median rent | $1,548 | $2,151 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 9.3% | 13.2% |
| Combined sales tax | 8.38% | 6.60% |
| Capital gains tax | 4.80% | 10.75% |
| Property tax rate | 1.14% | 2.63% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,400 | $7,600 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $10,000 | $13,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | 2.55% | None |
| Avg commute (min) | 23 | 26 |
| Home insurance / yr | $2,400 | $1,300 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,800 | $2,000 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $750 | $900 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $400 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 14.0 | 23.5 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.00 | 3.25 |
| Violent crime /100k | 490 | 200 |
| Avg summer high °F | 89 | 86 |
| Avg winter low °F | 22 | 23 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 2 | 5 |