Washington, DC vs Springfield, MO
Moving from Washington to Springfield? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($583,013 → $272,938 median home) and taxes.
Washington vs Springfield 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 Washington, DC, you'd need about $81,347 in Springfield, MO (−$18,653).
Livability — Washington, DC: 39 · Springfield, MO: 69 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 1,286 sqft in Washington vs 3,205 sqft in Springfield ($389 vs $156 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Washington, DC | Springfield, MO | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $28,992 | $15,252 | −$13,740 |
| Groceries | $5,318 | $4,830 | −$488 |
| Transportation | $3,855 | $3,390 | −$465 |
| Utilities | $2,748 | $1,512 | −$1,236 |
| Insurance | $1,400 | $2,400 | +$1,000 |
| Taxes | $17,710 | $9,116 | −$8,594 |
| Total | $60,023 | $36,500 | −$23,523 |
Side by side
| Metric | Washington, DC | Springfield, MO |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 109.5 | 89.1 |
| Unemployment rate | 4.87% | 3.91% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 4.2% | 4.8% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 42 | 42 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $6.23 | $5.07 |
| Median home price | $583,013 | $272,938 |
| Home price ÷ income | 4.9× | 4.7× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | -0.5% | 2.4% |
| Price per square foot | $389 | $156 |
| Median rent | $2,416 | $1,271 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 12.0% | 9.3% |
| Combined sales tax | 6.00% | 8.38% |
| Capital gains tax | 10.75% | 4.80% |
| Property tax rate | 0.95% | 0.72% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $7,800 | $6,400 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $26,000 | $10,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | None | 2.55% |
| Avg commute (min) | 34 | 23 |
| Home insurance / yr | $1,400 | $2,400 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $2,000 | $1,800 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $800 | $750 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $400 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 25.4 | 14.0 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.40 | 3.00 |
| Natural gas / mo | $80 | $72 |
| Water & sewer / mo | $271 | $184 |
| Home internet / mo | $81 | $86 |
| Violent crime /100k | 1,000 | 490 |
| Avg summer high °F | 88 | 89 |
| Avg winter low °F | 29 | 22 |
| Annual precipitation (in) | 41.8 | 41.7 |
| Annual snowfall (in) | 13.7 | 16.6 |
| Sunshine (% possible) | 56% | 57% |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 4 | 2 |