Spartanburg, SC vs Kansas City, MO
Moving from Spartanburg to Kansas City? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($279,792 → $329,641 median home) and taxes.
Spartanburg vs Kansas City 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 Spartanburg, SC, you'd need about $102,999 in Kansas City, MO (+$2,999).
Livability — Spartanburg, SC: 71 · Kansas City, MO: 67 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 3,574 sqft in Spartanburg vs 2,654 sqft in Kansas City ($140 vs $188 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Spartanburg, SC | Kansas City, MO | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $17,676 | $18,576 | +$900 |
| Groceries | $4,797 | $4,828 | +$30 |
| Transportation | $3,465 | $3,390 | −$75 |
| Utilities | $1,848 | $1,512 | −$336 |
| Insurance | $2,000 | $2,400 | +$400 |
| Taxes | $10,153 | $10,526 | +$373 |
| Total | $39,939 | $41,232 | +$1,292 |
Side by side
| Metric | Spartanburg, SC | Kansas City, MO |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 90.5 | 93.2 |
| Unemployment rate | 4.72% | 4.18% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 1.4% | 4.9% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 49 | 53 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.15 | $5.30 |
| Median home price | $279,792 | $329,641 |
| Home price ÷ income | 4.5× | 4.2× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 2.3% | 3.5% |
| Price per square foot | $140 | $188 |
| Median rent | $1,473 | $1,548 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 8.9% | 9.3% |
| Combined sales tax | 7.44% | 8.38% |
| Capital gains tax | 6.40% | 4.80% |
| Property tax rate | 0.59% | 1.14% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,500 | $6,400 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $8,500 | $10,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | 2.33% | 2.55% |
| Avg commute (min) | 24 | 23 |
| Home insurance / yr | $2,000 | $2,400 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,900 | $1,800 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $900 | $750 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $350 | $400 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 17.1 | 14.0 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.05 | 3.00 |
| Violent crime /100k | 530 | 490 |
| Avg summer high °F | 91 | 89 |
| Avg winter low °F | 36 | 22 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 2 | 2 |