Baton Rouge vs New Orleans leftover
Moving to New Orleans costs you $228 a month
$2,427/mo leftover in New Orleans vs $2,655 in Baton Rouge after tax and rent ($228 less). −$2,736 a year for the same registered nurse, the same household size, and the same number of bedrooms. Not a cost-of-living index.
Baton Rouge leftover
$2,655
a month after tax and rent
New Orleans leftover
$2,427
−$228 vs Baton Rouge
Compare Baton Rouge to another metro
Same paycheck. Try a different city next to Baton Rouge.
Monthly gap
Baton Rouge → New Orleans
$228
less / month in Baton Rouge
$2,427 in New Orleans · $2,655 in Baton Rouge · One adult, renting a 1-bedroom
Home
Only when you tap. We match the nearest metro and don't keep the coordinates.
Destination
In 2022-2023, 1,147 households moved Baton Rouge → New Orleans (avg AGI $45,520). 1,504 went the other way. The whole move →
−$228 / mo
| Per month | Baton Rouge | New Orleans | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gross pay | $7,208 | $7,013 | −$195 |
| Income and payroll tax | $1,623 | $1,560 | −$64 |
| Take-home pay | $5,585 | $5,453 | −$132 |
| Rent | $1,065 | $1,223 | +$158 |
| Getting around | $560 | $498 | −$62 |
| Groceries | $360 | $360 | $0 |
| Healthcare | $405 | $405 | $0 |
| Utilities | $225 | $225 | $0 |
| Everything else | $315 | $315 | $0 |
| Left over | $2,655 | $2,427 | −$228 |
To break even in New Orleans, you'd need to earn
$88,000
Household gross, versus $86,500 today. That's the salary that leaves you exactly as much at the end of the month as Baton Rouge does now.
The tax difference alone
+$70
A year, in state and local income tax. Effective rates: 22.5% in Baton Rouge, 22.2% in New Orleans.
More about New Orleans
Baton Rouge, LA in full
A flat 3% state income tax, a median 2-bedroom asking rent of $1,268 and 230 sunny days; commutes average 27 minutes.
New Orleans, LA in full
A flat 3% state income tax, a median 2-bedroom asking rent of $1,456 and 240 sunny days; commutes average 25 minutes.
The reverse move
Same two cities, but starting from New Orleans on New Orleans wages.
New Orleans → Baton Rouge →Questions
Is the cost of living lower in New Orleans than Baton Rouge?
A one-bedroom is about $1,065 in Baton Rouge versus $1,223 in New Orleans. On a one-adult, one-bedroom household, leftover is about $228 a month lower in New Orleans. Change the job or household on the comparison to see your number.
Does New Orleans have state income tax?
New Orleans is in Louisiana, which taxes wage income.
What changes if you move from Baton Rouge to New Orleans?
Take-home pay is recalculated under Louisiana tax, rent is priced at the same bedroom count, and leftover is the gap. The from-to page also lists IRS households that already made the move, when that data exists.
Leftover is take-home after federal, state and city wage tax, minus asking rent at the bedroom count you set, minus a modelled month of groceries, utilities, healthcare, transport and childcare. It is not a cost-of-living index and not a moving quote. The dollar gap between Baton Rouge and New Orleans moves when you change the job, remote versus local pay, or bedrooms. How the math works · Leftover vs a COL index · Why a cheaper COL% can still lose leftover.
Rent is Zillow's asking rent for each metro; taxes and living costs are modelled. An estimate, not a quote or tax advice. How this is calculated.