Lafayette, LA vs Miami, FL
Moving from Lafayette to Miami? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($202,312 → $475,622 median home) and taxes.
Lafayette vs Miami 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 Lafayette, LA, you'd need about $128,023 in Miami, FL (+$28,023).
Livability — Lafayette, LA: 72 · Miami, FL: 57 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 4,941 sqft in Lafayette vs 1,945 sqft in Miami ($101 vs $257 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Lafayette, LA | Miami, FL | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $16,452 | $32,316 | +$15,864 |
| Groceries | $4,650 | $5,091 | +$441 |
| Transportation | $4,475 | $4,800 | +$325 |
| Utilities | $1,560 | $1,656 | +$96 |
| Insurance | $3,500 | $4,200 | +$700 |
| Taxes | $8,509 | $5,772 | −$2,737 |
| Total | $39,146 | $53,835 | +$14,689 |
Side by side
| Metric | Lafayette, LA | Miami, FL |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 87.6 | 112.1 |
| Unemployment rate | 5.97% | 5.24% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | -1.6% | 1.7% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 51 | 51 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $4.98 | $6.38 |
| Median home price | $202,312 | $475,622 |
| Home price ÷ income | 3.5× | 6.9× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 2.1% | -2.9% |
| Price per square foot | $101 | $257 |
| Median rent | $1,371 | $2,693 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 9.1% | 9.1% |
| Combined sales tax | 9.56% | 7.02% |
| Capital gains tax | 4.25% | None |
| Property tax rate | 0.49% | 0.90% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,600 | $7,500 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $8,000 | $10,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | 0.10% | None |
| Avg commute (min) | 26 | 30 |
| Home insurance / yr | $3,500 | $4,200 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $2,900 | $2,900 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $1,000 | $1,400 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 14.4 | 15.4 |
| Gas $/gal | 2.95 | 3.35 |
| Violent crime /100k | 630 | 380 |
| Avg summer high °F | 92 | 91 |
| Avg winter low °F | 43 | 52 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 2 | 3 |