Kansas City, MO vs Rockford, IL
Moving from Kansas City to Rockford? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($329,641 → $221,368 median home) and taxes.
Kansas City vs Rockford 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 $96,742 in Rockford, IL (−$3,258).
Livability — Kansas City, MO: 67 · Rockford, IL: 67 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 2,654 sqft in Kansas City vs 3,840 sqft in Rockford ($188 vs $130 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Kansas City, MO | Rockford, IL | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $18,576 | $15,828 | −$2,748 |
| Groceries | $4,828 | $4,655 | −$173 |
| Transportation | $3,390 | $3,550 | +$160 |
| Utilities | $1,512 | $2,208 | +$696 |
| Insurance | $2,400 | $1,900 | −$500 |
| Taxes | $10,526 | $11,929 | +$1,403 |
| Total | $41,232 | $40,070 | −$1,162 |
Side by side
| Metric | Kansas City, MO | Rockford, IL |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 93.2 | 90.2 |
| Unemployment rate | 4.18% | 7.53% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 4.9% | -0.9% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 42 | 42 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.30 | $5.13 |
| Median home price | $329,641 | $221,368 |
| Home price ÷ income | 4.2× | 3.5× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 3.5% | 9.1% |
| Price per square foot | $188 | $130 |
| Median rent | $1,548 | $1,319 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 9.3% | 12.9% |
| Combined sales tax | 8.38% | 8.86% |
| Capital gains tax | 4.80% | 4.95% |
| Property tax rate | 1.14% | 2.54% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,400 | $6,800 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $10,000 | $14,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | 2.55% | None |
| Avg commute (min) | 23 | 24 |
| Home insurance / yr | $2,400 | $1,900 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,800 | $1,600 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $750 | $700 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $400 | $300 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 14.0 | 20.5 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.00 | 3.60 |
| Natural gas / mo | $72 | $82 |
| Water & sewer / mo | $184 | $57 |
| Home internet / mo | $86 | $77 |
| Violent crime /100k | 490 | 430 |
| Avg summer high °F | 89 | 85 |
| Avg winter low °F | 22 | 15 |
| Annual precipitation (in) | 39.3 | 40.9 |
| Annual snowfall (in) | 18.2 | 38.8 |
| Sunshine (% possible) | 60% | 54% |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 2 | 4 |