St. Louis, MO vs Tuscaloosa, AL
Moving from St. Louis to Tuscaloosa? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($276,878 → $223,201 median home) and taxes.
St. Louis vs Tuscaloosa 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 $93,824 in Tuscaloosa, AL (−$6,176).
Livability — St. Louis, MO: 65 · Tuscaloosa, AL: 74 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 3,161 sqft in St. Louis vs 4,591 sqft in Tuscaloosa ($158 vs $109 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | St. Louis, MO | Tuscaloosa, AL | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $17,412 | $17,820 | +$408 |
| Groceries | $4,934 | $4,729 | −$205 |
| Transportation | $3,390 | $3,465 | +$75 |
| Utilities | $1,512 | $1,884 | +$372 |
| Insurance | $2,400 | $2,400 | +$0 |
| Taxes | $10,488 | $8,901 | −$1,587 |
| Total | $40,136 | $39,199 | −$938 |
Side by side
| Metric | St. Louis, MO | Tuscaloosa, AL |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 95.0 | 89.1 |
| Unemployment rate | 4.35% | 5.59% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 0.3% | 13.9% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 55 | 37 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.40 | $5.07 |
| Median home price | $276,878 | $223,201 |
| Home price ÷ income | 3.7× | 3.8× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 2.9% | 0.4% |
| Price per square foot | $158 | $109 |
| Median rent | $1,451 | $1,485 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 9.3% | 9.8% |
| Combined sales tax | 8.38% | 9.25% |
| Capital gains tax | 4.80% | 5.00% |
| Property tax rate | 1.26% | 0.33% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,400 | $6,200 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $10,000 | $7,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | 2.55% | 0.70% |
| Avg commute (min) | 25 | 24 |
| Home insurance / yr | $2,400 | $2,400 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,800 | $1,900 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $750 | $800 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $400 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 14.0 | 17.4 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.00 | 2.95 |
| Violent crime /100k | 490 | 450 |
| Avg summer high °F | 89 | 91 |
| Avg winter low °F | 22 | 33 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 2 | 2 |