Kansas City, MO vs Seattle, WA
Moving from Kansas City to Seattle? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($329,641 → $750,279 median home) and taxes.
Kansas City vs Seattle 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 $120,952 in Seattle, WA (+$20,952).
Livability — Kansas City, MO: 67 · Seattle, WA: 48 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 2,654 sqft in Kansas City vs 1,200 sqft in Seattle ($188 vs $417 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Kansas City, MO | Seattle, WA | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $18,576 | $26,784 | +$8,208 |
| Groceries | $4,828 | $5,405 | +$578 |
| Transportation | $3,390 | $4,075 | +$685 |
| Utilities | $1,512 | $1,548 | +$36 |
| Insurance | $2,400 | $1,500 | −$900 |
| Taxes | $10,526 | $8,826 | −$1,700 |
| Total | $41,232 | $48,138 | +$6,907 |
Side by side
| Metric | Kansas City, MO | Seattle, WA |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 93.2 | 112.7 |
| Unemployment rate | 4.18% | 4.59% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 4.9% | 7.1% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 53 | 47 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.30 | $6.41 |
| Median home price | $329,641 | $750,279 |
| Home price ÷ income | 4.2× | 7.0× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 3.5% | -1.9% |
| Price per square foot | $188 | $417 |
| Median rent | $1,548 | $2,232 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 9.3% | 10.7% |
| Combined sales tax | 8.38% | 9.38% |
| Capital gains tax | 4.80% | 7.00% |
| Property tax rate | 1.14% | 0.88% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,400 | $6,600 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $10,000 | $16,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | 2.55% | None |
| Avg commute (min) | 23 | 30 |
| Home insurance / yr | $2,400 | $1,500 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,800 | $1,600 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $750 | $700 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $400 | $700 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 14.0 | 14.4 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.00 | 4.55 |
| Violent crime /100k | 490 | 375 |
| Avg summer high °F | 89 | 76 |
| Avg winter low °F | 22 | 37 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 2 | 5 |