Bloomington vs Decatur leftover
You'd keep $24 more a month in Decatur
$2,774/mo leftover in Decatur vs $2,750 in Bloomington after tax and rent ($24 more). +$288 a year for the same registered nurse, the same household size, and the same number of bedrooms. Not a cost-of-living index.
Bloomington leftover
$2,750
a month after tax and rent
Decatur leftover
$2,774
+$24 vs Bloomington
Compare Bloomington to another metro
Same paycheck. Try a different city next to Bloomington.
Monthly gap
Bloomington → Decatur
$24
more / month in Decatur
$2,774 in Decatur · $2,750 in Bloomington · 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, 60 households moved Bloomington → Decatur (avg AGI $40,067). 74 went the other way. The whole move →
+$24 / mo
| Per month | Bloomington | Decatur | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gross pay | $7,333 | $7,201 | −$133 |
| Income and payroll tax | $1,827 | $1,781 | −$46 |
| Take-home pay | $5,506 | $5,419 | −$87 |
| Rent | $904 | $699 | −$205 |
| Getting around | $483 | $577 | +$94 |
| Groceries | $378 | $378 | $0 |
| Healthcare | $425 | $425 | $0 |
| Utilities | $236 | $236 | $0 |
| Everything else | $330 | $330 | $0 |
| Left over | $2,750 | $2,774 | +$24 |
To break even in Decatur, you'd need to earn
$86,000
Household gross, versus $88,000 today. That's the salary that leaves you exactly as much at the end of the month as Bloomington does now.
The tax difference alone
+$79
A year, in state and local income tax. Effective rates: 24.9% in Bloomington, 24.7% in Decatur.
More about Decatur
Bloomington, IL in full
A flat 4.95% state income tax, a median 2-bedroom asking rent of $1,076 and 203 sunny days; commutes average 19 minutes.
Decatur, IL in full
A flat 4.95% state income tax, a median 2-bedroom asking rent of $832 and 203 sunny days; commutes average 19 minutes.
The reverse move
Same two cities, but starting from Decatur on Decatur wages.
Decatur → Bloomington →Questions
Is the cost of living lower in Decatur than Bloomington?
A one-bedroom is about $904 in Bloomington versus $699 in Decatur. On a one-adult, one-bedroom household, leftover is about $24 a month higher in Decatur. Change the job or household on the comparison to see your number.
Does Decatur have state income tax?
Decatur is in Illinois, which taxes wage income.
What changes if you move from Bloomington to Decatur?
Take-home pay is recalculated under Illinois 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 Bloomington and Decatur 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.