Tulsa, OK vs Pittsburgh, PA
Moving from Tulsa to Pittsburgh? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($253,725 → $231,356 median home) and taxes.
Tulsa vs Pittsburgh 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 Tulsa, OK, you'd need about $105,352 in Pittsburgh, PA (+$5,352).
Livability — Tulsa, OK: 71 · Pittsburgh, PA: 70 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 3,745 sqft in Tulsa vs 3,782 sqft in Pittsburgh ($134 vs $132 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Tulsa, OK | Pittsburgh, PA | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $16,224 | $18,324 | +$2,100 |
| Groceries | $4,667 | $4,915 | +$248 |
| Transportation | $3,575 | $3,440 | −$135 |
| Utilities | $1,440 | $2,316 | +$876 |
| Insurance | $4,400 | $1,200 | −$3,200 |
| Taxes | $9,670 | $8,069 | −$1,600 |
| Total | $39,976 | $38,264 | −$1,712 |
Side by side
| Metric | Tulsa, OK | Pittsburgh, PA |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 89.9 | 94.7 |
| Unemployment rate | 5.14% | 5.09% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 4.1% | 0.7% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 42 | 42 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.12 | $5.39 |
| Median home price | $253,725 | $231,356 |
| Home price ÷ income | 3.9× | 3.2× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 2.8% | 0.8% |
| Price per square foot | $134 | $132 |
| Median rent | $1,352 | $1,527 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 9.0% | 10.6% |
| Combined sales tax | 8.99% | 6.34% |
| Capital gains tax | 4.75% | 3.07% |
| Property tax rate | 0.94% | 1.44% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,300 | $7,000 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $9,000 | $12,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | None | None |
| Avg commute (min) | 22 | 27 |
| Home insurance / yr | $4,400 | $1,200 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $2,000 | $1,600 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $750 | $650 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $300 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 13.3 | 21.5 |
| Gas $/gal | 2.95 | 3.55 |
| Natural gas / mo | $56 | $82 |
| Water & sewer / mo | $83 | $65 |
| Home internet / mo | $76 | $78 |
| Violent crime /100k | 460 | 390 |
| Avg summer high °F | 94 | 85 |
| Avg winter low °F | 27 | 22 |
| Annual precipitation (in) | 41.0 | 39.6 |
| Annual snowfall (in) | 8.7 | 44.1 |
| Sunshine (% possible) | 62% | 45% |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 2 | 3 |