Provo, UT vs Phoenix, AZ
Moving from Provo to Phoenix? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($546,641 → $448,352 median home) and taxes.
Provo vs Phoenix 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 Provo, UT, you'd need about $109,332 in Phoenix, AZ (+$9,332).
Livability — Provo, UT: 65 · Phoenix, AZ: 62 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 1,921 sqft in Provo vs 2,063 sqft in Phoenix ($260 vs $242 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Provo, UT | Phoenix, AZ | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $21,900 | $20,904 | −$996 |
| Groceries | $4,736 | $4,919 | +$183 |
| Transportation | $3,450 | $3,960 | +$510 |
| Utilities | $1,440 | $1,668 | +$228 |
| Insurance | $1,200 | $1,800 | +$600 |
| Taxes | $9,160 | $7,280 | −$1,879 |
| Total | $41,885 | $40,531 | −$1,354 |
Side by side
| Metric | Provo, UT | Phoenix, AZ |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 95.7 | 104.7 |
| Unemployment rate | 3.41% | 4.88% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 15.5% | 6.7% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 42 | 42 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.45 | $5.96 |
| Median home price | $546,641 | $448,352 |
| Home price ÷ income | 6.0× | 5.6× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 1.9% | -1.7% |
| Price per square foot | $260 | $242 |
| Median rent | $1,825 | $1,742 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 12.1% | 9.5% |
| Combined sales tax | 7.19% | 8.38% |
| Capital gains tax | 4.65% | 2.50% |
| Property tax rate | 0.45% | 0.51% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,000 | $6,300 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $10,000 | $12,500 |
| Vehicle property tax | None | 1.68% |
| Avg commute (min) | 22 | 27 |
| Home insurance / yr | $1,200 | $1,800 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,500 | $1,900 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $500 | $550 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $450 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 13.3 | 15.5 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.60 | 3.60 |
| Natural gas / mo | $52 | $54 |
| Water & sewer / mo | $187 | $106 |
| Home internet / mo | $76 | $77 |
| Violent crime /100k | 260 | 430 |
| Avg summer high °F | 92 | 104 |
| Avg winter low °F | 24 | 41 |
| Annual precipitation (in) | 15.5 | 7.2 |
| Annual snowfall (in) | 51.9 | 0.0 |
| Sunshine (% possible) | 66% | 85% |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 2 | 2 |