Waco, TX vs Indianapolis, IN
Moving from Waco to Indianapolis? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($256,772 → $295,921 median home) and taxes.
Waco 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 Waco, TX, you'd need about $103,857 in Indianapolis, IN (+$3,857).
Livability — Waco, TX: 73 · Indianapolis, IN: 71 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 4,088 sqft in Waco vs 3,211 sqft in Indianapolis ($122 vs $156 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Waco, TX | Indianapolis, IN | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $16,848 | $18,636 | +$1,788 |
| Groceries | $4,647 | $4,740 | +$93 |
| Transportation | $3,675 | $3,250 | −$425 |
| Utilities | $1,836 | $1,932 | +$96 |
| Insurance | $3,600 | $1,600 | −$2,000 |
| Taxes | $5,779 | $7,367 | +$1,588 |
| Total | $36,385 | $37,525 | +$1,140 |
Side by side
| Metric | Waco, TX | Indianapolis, IN |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 91.1 | 94.7 |
| Unemployment rate | 4.56% | 4.28% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 5.7% | 6.1% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 42 | 42 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.19 | $5.39 |
| Median home price | $256,772 | $295,921 |
| Home price ÷ income | 4.3× | 4.0× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | -0.8% | 1.3% |
| Price per square foot | $122 | $156 |
| Median rent | $1,404 | $1,553 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 8.6% | 9.3% |
| Combined sales tax | 8.20% | 7.00% |
| Capital gains tax | None | 3.05% |
| Property tax rate | 1.53% | 0.84% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,800 | $6,600 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $9,500 | $12,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | None | 1.20% |
| Avg commute (min) | 21 | 25 |
| Home insurance / yr | $3,600 | $1,600 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $2,100 | $1,400 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $900 | $600 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 17.0 | 17.9 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.00 | 3.30 |
| Natural gas / mo | $52 | $72 |
| Water & sewer / mo | $134 | $102 |
| Home internet / mo | $83 | $81 |
| Violent crime /100k | 430 | 360 |
| Avg summer high °F | 96 | 86 |
| Avg winter low °F | 38 | 20 |
| Annual precipitation (in) | 36.4 | 43.6 |
| Annual snowfall (in) | 1.0 | 25.5 |
| Sunshine (% possible) | 64% | 55% |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 2 | 2 |