Springfield, MA vs St. Louis, MO
Moving from Springfield to St. Louis? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($376,017 → $276,878 median home) and taxes.
Springfield vs St. Louis 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 Springfield, MA, you'd need about $96,844 in St. Louis, MO (−$3,156).
Livability — Springfield, MA: 60 · St. Louis, MO: 65 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 2,260 sqft in Springfield vs 3,161 sqft in St. Louis ($221 vs $158 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Springfield, MA | St. Louis, MO | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $23,292 | $17,412 | −$5,880 |
| Groceries | $4,938 | $4,934 | −$3 |
| Transportation | $3,210 | $3,390 | +$180 |
| Utilities | $3,180 | $1,512 | −$1,668 |
| Insurance | $1,800 | $2,400 | +$600 |
| Taxes | $15,617 | $10,488 | −$5,128 |
| Total | $52,036 | $40,136 | −$11,900 |
Side by side
| Metric | Springfield, MA | St. Louis, MO |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 98.1 | 95.0 |
| Unemployment rate | 5.93% | 4.35% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 9.4% | 0.3% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 42 | 42 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.58 | $5.40 |
| Median home price | $376,017 | $276,878 |
| Home price ÷ income | 5.3× | 3.7× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 2.7% | 2.9% |
| Price per square foot | $221 | $158 |
| Median rent | $1,941 | $1,451 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 11.5% | 9.3% |
| Combined sales tax | 6.25% | 8.38% |
| Capital gains tax | 9.00% | 4.80% |
| Property tax rate | 1.59% | 1.26% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $8,200 | $6,400 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $21,000 | $10,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | 2.25% | 2.55% |
| Avg commute (min) | 23 | 25 |
| Home insurance / yr | $1,800 | $2,400 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,500 | $1,800 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $800 | $750 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $400 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 29.4 | 14.0 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.30 | 3.00 |
| Natural gas / mo | $108 | $72 |
| Water & sewer / mo | $71 | $184 |
| Home internet / mo | $78 | $86 |
| Violent crime /100k | 330 | 490 |
| Avg summer high °F | 82 | 89 |
| Avg winter low °F | 22 | 22 |
| Annual precipitation (in) | 47.1 | 41.7 |
| Annual snowfall (in) | 51.7 | 16.6 |
| Sunshine (% possible) | 56% | 57% |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 4 | 2 |