Champaign vs Decatur leftover
You'd keep $371 more a month in Decatur
$2,771/mo leftover in Decatur vs $2,400 in Champaign after tax and rent ($371 more). +$4,452 a year for the same registered nurse, the same household size, and the same number of bedrooms. Not a cost-of-living index.
Champaign leftover
$2,400
a month after tax and rent
Decatur leftover
$2,771
+$371 vs Champaign
Compare Champaign to another metro
Same paycheck. Try a different city next to Champaign.
Monthly gap
Champaign → Decatur
$371
more / month in Decatur
$2,771 in Decatur · $2,400 in Champaign · 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, 127 households moved Champaign → Decatur (avg AGI $62,299). 130 went the other way. The whole move →
+$371 / mo
| Per month | Champaign | Decatur | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gross pay | $6,750 | $7,195 | +$445 |
| Income and payroll tax | $1,625 | $1,779 | +$154 |
| Take-home pay | $5,125 | $5,416 | +$291 |
| Rent | $897 | $699 | −$198 |
| Getting around | $459 | $577 | +$118 |
| Groceries | $378 | $378 | $0 |
| Healthcare | $425 | $425 | $0 |
| Utilities | $236 | $236 | $0 |
| Everything else | $330 | $330 | $0 |
| Left over | $2,400 | $2,771 | +$371 |
To break even in Decatur, you'd need to earn
$79,500
Household gross, versus $81,000 today. That's the salary that leaves you exactly as much at the end of the month as Champaign does now.
The tax difference alone
−$264
A year, in state and local income tax. Effective rates: 24.1% in Champaign, 24.7% in Decatur.
More about Decatur
Champaign, IL in full
A flat 4.95% state income tax, a median 2-bedroom asking rent of $1,068 and 204 sunny days; commutes average 18 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 → Champaign →Questions
Is the cost of living lower in Decatur than Champaign?
A one-bedroom is about $897 in Champaign versus $699 in Decatur. On a one-adult, one-bedroom household, leftover is about $371 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 Champaign 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 Champaign 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.