St. Louis, MO vs Roanoke, VA
Moving from St. Louis to Roanoke? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($276,878 → $301,139 median home) and taxes.
St. Louis vs Roanoke 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 $96,033 in Roanoke, VA (−$3,967).
Livability — St. Louis, MO: 65 · Roanoke, VA: 73 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 3,161 sqft in St. Louis vs 3,320 sqft in Roanoke ($158 vs $151 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | St. Louis, MO | Roanoke, VA | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $17,412 | $16,836 | −$576 |
| Groceries | $4,934 | $4,853 | −$81 |
| Transportation | $3,390 | $3,080 | −$310 |
| Utilities | $1,512 | $1,872 | +$360 |
| Insurance | $2,400 | $1,500 | −$900 |
| Taxes | $10,488 | $9,549 | −$939 |
| Total | $40,136 | $37,690 | −$2,446 |
Side by side
| Metric | St. Louis, MO | Roanoke, VA |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 95.0 | 91.2 |
| Unemployment rate | 4.35% | 4.05% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 0.3% | 0.5% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 55 | 40 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.40 | $5.19 |
| Median home price | $276,878 | $301,139 |
| Home price ÷ income | 3.7× | 4.6× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 2.9% | 3.8% |
| Price per square foot | $158 | $151 |
| Median rent | $1,451 | $1,403 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 9.3% | 12.5% |
| Combined sales tax | 8.38% | 5.73% |
| Capital gains tax | 4.80% | 5.75% |
| Property tax rate | 1.26% | 0.81% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,400 | $6,800 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $10,000 | $15,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | 2.55% | 3.97% |
| Avg commute (min) | 25 | 24 |
| Home insurance / yr | $2,400 | $1,500 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,800 | $1,400 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $750 | $700 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $400 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 14.0 | 17.4 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.00 | 3.20 |
| Violent crime /100k | 490 | 200 |
| Avg summer high °F | 89 | 87 |
| Avg winter low °F | 22 | 28 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 2 | 3 |