Detroit, MI → St. Louis, MO
You'd keep $159 more a month in St. Louis
+$1,908 a year for the same registered nurse, the same household size, and the same number of bedrooms.
| Per month | Detroit | St. Louis | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gross pay | $7,625 | $7,547 | −$78 |
| Income and payroll tax | $2,049 | $1,892 | −$157 |
| Take-home pay | $5,576 | $5,655 | +$80 |
| Rent | $1,194 | $1,144 | −$50 |
| Getting around | $560 | $545 | −$15 |
| Groceries | $372 | $368 | −$4 |
| Healthcare | $419 | $414 | −$5 |
| Utilities | $233 | $230 | −$3 |
| Everything else | $326 | $322 | −$4 |
| Left over | $2,473 | $2,632 | +$159 |
To break even in St. Louis, you'd need to earn
$87,500
Household gross, versus $91,500 today. That's the salary that leaves you exactly as much at the end of the month as Detroit does now.
The tax difference alone
+$1,611
A year, in state and local income tax. Effective rates: 26.9% in Detroit, 25.1% in St. Louis.
Detroit, MI in full
Engineering wages against some of the cheapest urban housing in America.
St. Louis, MO in full
The lowest home prices of any metro over 2 million people.
The reverse move
Same two cities, but starting from St. Louis on St. Louis wages.
St. Louis → Detroit →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.