Providence, RI vs Fayetteville, AR
Moving from Providence to Fayetteville? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($524,867 → $368,497 median home) and taxes.
Providence vs Fayetteville 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 Providence, RI, you'd need about $90,089 in Fayetteville, AR (−$9,911).
Livability — Providence, RI: 58 · Fayetteville, AR: 66 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 1,524 sqft in Providence vs 2,714 sqft in Fayetteville ($328 vs $184 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Providence, RI | Fayetteville, AR | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $25,956 | $19,128 | −$6,828 |
| Groceries | $4,922 | $4,655 | −$267 |
| Transportation | $3,875 | $3,405 | −$470 |
| Utilities | $3,060 | $1,524 | −$1,536 |
| Insurance | $1,700 | $2,800 | +$1,100 |
| Taxes | $13,121 | $8,682 | −$4,439 |
| Total | $52,634 | $40,193 | −$12,440 |
Side by side
| Metric | Providence, RI | Fayetteville, AR |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 101.5 | 91.5 |
| Unemployment rate | 5.82% | 3.55% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 3.6% | 7.1% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 42 | 41 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.78 | $5.20 |
| Median home price | $524,867 | $368,497 |
| Home price ÷ income | 6.5× | 5.0× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 3.1% | 3.1% |
| Price per square foot | $328 | $184 |
| Median rent | $2,163 | $1,594 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 11.4% | 10.2% |
| Combined sales tax | 7.00% | 9.47% |
| Capital gains tax | 5.99% | 3.90% |
| Property tax rate | 1.31% | 0.60% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $7,600 | $6,000 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $13,000 | $7,500 |
| Vehicle property tax | None | 1.02% |
| Avg commute (min) | 26 | 21 |
| Home insurance / yr | $1,700 | $2,800 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $2,100 | $1,900 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $900 | $750 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $350 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 28.3 | 14.2 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.35 | 2.95 |
| Violent crime /100k | 240 | 640 |
| Avg summer high °F | 82 | 93 |
| Avg winter low °F | 21 | 30 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 4 | 2 |