Lexington, KY vs St. Louis, MO
Moving from Lexington to St. Louis? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($327,671 → $276,878 median home) and taxes.
Lexington vs St. Louis 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 Lexington, KY, you'd need about $102,672 in St. Louis, MO (+$2,672).
Livability — Lexington, KY: 72 · St. Louis, MO: 65 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 2,899 sqft in Lexington vs 3,161 sqft in St. Louis ($173 vs $158 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Lexington, KY | St. Louis, MO | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $18,336 | $17,412 | −$924 |
| Groceries | $4,721 | $4,934 | +$213 |
| Transportation | $3,870 | $3,390 | −$480 |
| Utilities | $1,620 | $1,512 | −$108 |
| Insurance | $2,200 | $2,400 | +$200 |
| Taxes | $8,073 | $10,488 | +$2,415 |
| Total | $38,820 | $40,136 | +$1,316 |
Side by side
| Metric | Lexington, KY | St. Louis, MO |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 92.5 | 95.0 |
| Unemployment rate | 4.70% | 4.35% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 3.0% | 0.3% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 43 | 55 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.26 | $5.40 |
| Median home price | $327,671 | $276,878 |
| Home price ÷ income | 4.8× | 3.7× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 2.7% | 2.9% |
| Price per square foot | $173 | $158 |
| Median rent | $1,528 | $1,451 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 9.6% | 9.3% |
| Combined sales tax | 6.00% | 8.38% |
| Capital gains tax | 4.00% | 4.80% |
| Property tax rate | 0.83% | 1.26% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,300 | $6,400 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $9,000 | $10,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | 1.44% | 2.55% |
| Avg commute (min) | 22 | 25 |
| Home insurance / yr | $2,200 | $2,400 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $2,200 | $1,800 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $700 | $750 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $250 | $400 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 15.0 | 14.0 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.10 | 3.00 |
| Violent crime /100k | 260 | 490 |
| Avg summer high °F | 88 | 89 |
| Avg winter low °F | 26 | 22 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 2 | 2 |