Sioux Falls, SD vs Detroit, MI
Moving from Sioux Falls to Detroit? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($342,936 → $269,080 median home) and taxes.
Sioux Falls vs Detroit 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 Sioux Falls, SD, you'd need about $108,986 in Detroit, MI (+$8,986).
Livability — Sioux Falls, SD: 69 · Detroit, MI: 62 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 2,479 sqft in Sioux Falls vs 3,066 sqft in Detroit ($202 vs $163 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Sioux Falls, SD | Detroit, MI | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $15,708 | $18,000 | +$2,292 |
| Groceries | $4,870 | $4,896 | +$27 |
| Transportation | $3,200 | $4,575 | +$1,375 |
| Utilities | $1,572 | $2,316 | +$744 |
| Insurance | $2,400 | $1,300 | −$1,100 |
| Taxes | $5,263 | $9,547 | +$4,284 |
| Total | $33,013 | $40,634 | +$7,622 |
Side by side
| Metric | Sioux Falls, SD | Detroit, MI |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 90.1 | 98.2 |
| Unemployment rate | 2.15% | 6.60% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 10.9% | 1.7% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 42 | 42 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.13 | $5.59 |
| Median home price | $342,936 | $269,080 |
| Home price ÷ income | 4.4× | 3.7× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 1.5% | 2.8% |
| Price per square foot | $202 | $163 |
| Median rent | $1,309 | $1,500 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 8.4% | 10.0% |
| Combined sales tax | 6.40% | 6.00% |
| Capital gains tax | None | 4.25% |
| Property tax rate | 1.18% | 1.43% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,800 | $6,500 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $8,000 | $11,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | None | 0.61% |
| Avg commute (min) | 19 | 27 |
| Home insurance / yr | $2,400 | $1,300 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,500 | $2,700 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $600 | $600 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 14.5 | 21.4 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.20 | 3.35 |
| Natural gas / mo | $64 | $78 |
| Water & sewer / mo | $68 | $74 |
| Home internet / mo | $81 | $78 |
| Violent crime /100k | 400 | 460 |
| Avg summer high °F | 86 | 83 |
| Avg winter low °F | 10 | 16 |
| Annual precipitation (in) | 26.0 | 34.3 |
| Annual snowfall (in) | 48.0 | 45.0 |
| Sunshine (% possible) | 60% | 53% |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 2 | 3 |