Louisville/Jefferson County, KY vs Cleveland, OH
Moving from Louisville/Jefferson County to Cleveland? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($350,000 → $252,210 median home) and taxes.
Louisville/Jefferson County vs Cleveland 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 Louisville/Jefferson County, KY, you'd need about $98,077 in Cleveland, OH (−$1,923).
Livability — Louisville/Jefferson County, KY: 72 · Cleveland, OH: 71 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 2,500 sqft in Louisville/Jefferson County vs 3,270 sqft in Cleveland ($200 vs $153 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Louisville/Jefferson County, KY | Cleveland, OH | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $18,000 | $17,532 | −$468 |
| Groceries | $4,716 | $4,830 | +$114 |
| Transportation | $3,870 | $3,025 | −$845 |
| Utilities | $1,620 | $2,100 | +$480 |
| Insurance | $2,200 | $1,300 | −$900 |
| Taxes | $7,922 | $9,518 | +$1,596 |
| Total | $38,328 | $38,305 | −$23 |
Side by side
| Metric | Louisville/Jefferson County, KY | Cleveland, OH |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 93.2 | 91.4 |
| Unemployment rate | 4.66% | 5.88% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 0.3% | 0.8% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 51 | 55 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.30 | $5.20 |
| Median home price | $350,000 | $252,210 |
| Home price ÷ income | 5.0× | 3.8× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 3.0% | 4.3% |
| Price per square foot | $200 | $153 |
| Median rent | $1,500 | $1,461 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 9.6% | 10.0% |
| Combined sales tax | 6.00% | 7.24% |
| Capital gains tax | 4.00% | 3.50% |
| Property tax rate | 0.82% | 1.84% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,300 | $6,400 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $9,000 | $10,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | 1.44% | None |
| Avg commute (min) | 24 | 25 |
| Home insurance / yr | $2,200 | $1,300 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $2,200 | $1,300 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $700 | $600 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $250 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 15.0 | 19.5 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.10 | 3.25 |
| Violent crime /100k | 260 | 300 |
| Avg summer high °F | 88 | 85 |
| Avg winter low °F | 26 | 20 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 2 | 2 |