Tuscaloosa, AL vs Indianapolis, IN
Moving from Tuscaloosa to Indianapolis? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($223,201 → $295,921 median home) and taxes.
Tuscaloosa vs Indianapolis 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 Tuscaloosa, AL, you'd need about $106,221 in Indianapolis, IN (+$6,221).
Livability — Tuscaloosa, AL: 74 · Indianapolis, IN: 71 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 4,591 sqft in Tuscaloosa vs 3,211 sqft in Indianapolis ($109 vs $156 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Tuscaloosa, AL | Indianapolis, IN | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $17,820 | $18,636 | +$816 |
| Groceries | $4,729 | $4,740 | +$11 |
| Transportation | $3,465 | $3,250 | −$215 |
| Utilities | $1,884 | $1,932 | +$48 |
| Insurance | $2,400 | $1,600 | −$800 |
| Taxes | $8,901 | $7,367 | −$1,533 |
| Total | $39,199 | $37,525 | −$1,674 |
Side by side
| Metric | Tuscaloosa, AL | Indianapolis, IN |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 89.1 | 94.7 |
| Unemployment rate | 5.59% | 4.28% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 13.9% | 6.1% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 37 | 55 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.07 | $5.39 |
| Median home price | $223,201 | $295,921 |
| Home price ÷ income | 3.8× | 4.0× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 0.4% | 1.3% |
| Price per square foot | $109 | $156 |
| Median rent | $1,485 | $1,553 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 9.8% | 9.3% |
| Combined sales tax | 9.25% | 7.00% |
| Capital gains tax | 5.00% | 3.05% |
| Property tax rate | 0.33% | 0.84% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,200 | $6,600 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $7,000 | $12,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | 0.70% | 1.20% |
| Avg commute (min) | 24 | 25 |
| Home insurance / yr | $2,400 | $1,600 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,900 | $1,400 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $800 | $600 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 17.4 | 17.9 |
| Gas $/gal | 2.95 | 3.30 |
| Violent crime /100k | 450 | 360 |
| Avg summer high °F | 91 | 86 |
| Avg winter low °F | 33 | 20 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 2 | 2 |