Minneapolis, MN vs Scranton, PA
Moving from Minneapolis to Scranton? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($393,774 → $227,793 median home) and taxes.
Minneapolis vs Scranton 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 Minneapolis, MN, you'd need about $89,539 in Scranton, PA (−$10,461).
Livability — Minneapolis, MN: 54 · Scranton, PA: 68 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 2,285 sqft in Minneapolis vs 3,840 sqft in Scranton ($219 vs $130 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Minneapolis, MN | Scranton, PA | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $20,652 | $16,296 | −$4,356 |
| Groceries | $5,227 | $4,915 | −$312 |
| Transportation | $3,375 | $3,440 | +$65 |
| Utilities | $1,776 | $2,316 | +$540 |
| Insurance | $2,200 | $1,200 | −$1,000 |
| Taxes | $16,345 | $7,898 | −$8,447 |
| Total | $49,575 | $36,065 | −$13,510 |
Side by side
| Metric | Minneapolis, MN | Scranton, PA |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 104.3 | 93.4 |
| Unemployment rate | 3.90% | 5.40% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 4.3% | 1.7% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 42 | 42 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.93 | $5.31 |
| Median home price | $393,774 | $227,793 |
| Home price ÷ income | 4.2× | 3.7× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 2.1% | 1.0% |
| Price per square foot | $219 | $130 |
| Median rent | $1,721 | $1,358 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 12.1% | 10.6% |
| Combined sales tax | 8.10% | 6.34% |
| Capital gains tax | 9.85% | 3.07% |
| Property tax rate | 1.10% | 1.60% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,800 | $7,000 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $16,000 | $12,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | 1.58% | None |
| Avg commute (min) | 25 | 23 |
| Home insurance / yr | $2,200 | $1,200 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,600 | $1,600 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $600 | $650 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 16.4 | 21.5 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.15 | 3.55 |
| Natural gas / mo | $76 | $82 |
| Water & sewer / mo | $77 | $65 |
| Home internet / mo | $81 | $78 |
| Violent crime /100k | 280 | 390 |
| Avg summer high °F | 83 | 85 |
| Avg winter low °F | 4 | 22 |
| Annual precipitation (in) | 31.6 | 44.1 |
| Annual snowfall (in) | 51.2 | 44.0 |
| Sunshine (% possible) | 58% | 45% |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 3 | 3 |