St. Louis, MO vs Chicago, IL
Moving from St. Louis to Chicago? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($276,878 → $353,998 median home) and taxes.
St. Louis vs Chicago 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 St. Louis, MO, you'd need about $107,911 in Chicago, IL (+$7,911).
Livability — St. Louis, MO: 65 · Chicago, IL: 63 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 3,161 sqft in St. Louis vs 2,402 sqft in Chicago ($158 vs $208 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | St. Louis, MO | Chicago, IL | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $17,412 | $27,192 | +$9,780 |
| Groceries | $4,934 | $5,215 | +$281 |
| Transportation | $3,390 | $3,550 | +$160 |
| Utilities | $1,512 | $2,208 | +$696 |
| Insurance | $2,400 | $1,900 | −$500 |
| Taxes | $10,488 | $14,141 | +$3,653 |
| Total | $40,136 | $54,206 | +$14,070 |
Side by side
| Metric | St. Louis, MO | Chicago, IL |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 95.0 | 102.5 |
| Unemployment rate | 4.35% | 6.19% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 0.3% | 0.2% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 42 | 42 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.40 | $5.83 |
| Median home price | $276,878 | $353,998 |
| Home price ÷ income | 3.7× | 4.2× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 2.9% | 4.4% |
| Price per square foot | $158 | $208 |
| Median rent | $1,451 | $2,266 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 9.3% | 12.9% |
| Combined sales tax | 8.38% | 8.86% |
| Capital gains tax | 4.80% | 4.95% |
| Property tax rate | 1.26% | 2.11% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,400 | $6,800 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $10,000 | $14,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | 2.55% | None |
| Avg commute (min) | 25 | 31 |
| Home insurance / yr | $2,400 | $1,900 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,800 | $1,600 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $750 | $700 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $400 | $300 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 14.0 | 20.5 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.00 | 3.60 |
| Natural gas / mo | $72 | $82 |
| Water & sewer / mo | $184 | $57 |
| Home internet / mo | $86 | $77 |
| Violent crime /100k | 490 | 430 |
| Avg summer high °F | 89 | 85 |
| Avg winter low °F | 22 | 15 |
| Annual precipitation (in) | 41.7 | 40.9 |
| Annual snowfall (in) | 16.6 | 38.8 |
| Sunshine (% possible) | 57% | 54% |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 2 | 4 |