St. Louis, MO vs Waco, TX
Moving from St. Louis to Waco? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($276,878 → $256,772 median home) and taxes.
St. Louis vs Waco 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 $95,959 in Waco, TX (−$4,041).
Livability — St. Louis, MO: 65 · Waco, TX: 73 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 3,161 sqft in St. Louis vs 4,088 sqft in Waco ($158 vs $122 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | St. Louis, MO | Waco, TX | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $17,412 | $16,848 | −$564 |
| Groceries | $4,934 | $4,647 | −$288 |
| Transportation | $3,390 | $3,675 | +$285 |
| Utilities | $1,512 | $1,836 | +$324 |
| Insurance | $2,400 | $3,600 | +$1,200 |
| Taxes | $10,488 | $5,779 | −$4,709 |
| Total | $40,136 | $36,385 | −$3,752 |
Side by side
| Metric | St. Louis, MO | Waco, TX |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 95.0 | 91.1 |
| Unemployment rate | 4.35% | 4.56% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 0.3% | 5.7% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 55 | 53 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.40 | $5.19 |
| Median home price | $276,878 | $256,772 |
| Home price ÷ income | 3.7× | 4.3× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 2.9% | -0.8% |
| Price per square foot | $158 | $122 |
| Median rent | $1,451 | $1,404 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 9.3% | 8.6% |
| Combined sales tax | 8.38% | 8.20% |
| Capital gains tax | 4.80% | None |
| Property tax rate | 1.26% | 1.53% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,400 | $6,800 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $10,000 | $9,500 |
| Vehicle property tax | 2.55% | None |
| Avg commute (min) | 25 | 21 |
| Home insurance / yr | $2,400 | $3,600 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,800 | $2,100 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $750 | $900 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $400 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 14.0 | 17.0 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.00 | 3.00 |
| Violent crime /100k | 490 | 430 |
| Avg summer high °F | 89 | 96 |
| Avg winter low °F | 22 | 38 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 2 | 2 |
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