St. Louis, MO vs Memphis, TN
Moving from St. Louis to Memphis? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($276,878 → $247,229 median home) and taxes.
St. Louis vs Memphis 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 $96,814 in Memphis, TN (−$3,186).
Livability — St. Louis, MO: 65 · Memphis, TN: 70 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 3,161 sqft in St. Louis vs 4,045 sqft in Memphis ($158 vs $124 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | St. Louis, MO | Memphis, TN | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $17,412 | $17,292 | −$120 |
| Groceries | $4,934 | $4,715 | −$219 |
| Transportation | $3,390 | $3,130 | −$260 |
| Utilities | $1,512 | $1,608 | +$96 |
| Insurance | $2,400 | $2,200 | −$200 |
| Taxes | $10,488 | $5,158 | −$5,330 |
| Total | $40,136 | $34,103 | −$6,034 |
Side by side
| Metric | St. Louis, MO | Memphis, TN |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 95.0 | 91.9 |
| Unemployment rate | 4.35% | 6.84% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 0.3% | -0.6% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 55 | 56 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.40 | $5.23 |
| Median home price | $276,878 | $247,229 |
| Home price ÷ income | 3.7× | 4.0× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 2.9% | 0.1% |
| Price per square foot | $158 | $124 |
| Median rent | $1,451 | $1,441 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 9.3% | 7.6% |
| Combined sales tax | 8.38% | 9.55% |
| Capital gains tax | 4.80% | None |
| Property tax rate | 1.26% | 0.87% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,400 | $6,300 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $10,000 | $9,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | 2.55% | None |
| Avg commute (min) | 25 | 24 |
| Home insurance / yr | $2,400 | $2,200 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,800 | $1,600 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $750 | $700 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $400 | $350 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 14.0 | 14.9 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.00 | 2.95 |
| Violent crime /100k | 490 | 600 |
| Avg summer high °F | 89 | 89 |
| Avg winter low °F | 22 | 30 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 2 | 2 |