Dubuque vs Waterloo leftover
Moving to Waterloo costs you $224 a month
$2,757/mo leftover in Waterloo vs $2,981 in Dubuque after tax and rent ($224 less). −$2,688 a year for the same registered nurse, the same household size, and the same number of bedrooms. Not a cost-of-living index.
Dubuque leftover
$2,981
a month after tax and rent
Waterloo leftover
$2,757
−$224 vs Dubuque
Compare Dubuque to another metro
Same paycheck. Try a different city next to Dubuque.
Monthly gap
Dubuque → Waterloo
$224
less / month in Dubuque
$2,757 in Waterloo · $2,981 in Dubuque · 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, 35 households moved Dubuque → Waterloo (avg AGI $50,971). 33 went the other way. The whole move →
−$224 / mo
| Per month | Dubuque | Waterloo | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gross pay | $7,208 | $6,865 | −$343 |
| Income and payroll tax | $1,666 | $1,551 | −$115 |
| Take-home pay | $5,542 | $5,314 | −$228 |
| Rent | $806 | $788 | −$18 |
| Getting around | $496 | $510 | +$14 |
| Groceries | $347 | $347 | $0 |
| Healthcare | $391 | $391 | $0 |
| Utilities | $217 | $217 | $0 |
| Everything else | $304 | $304 | $0 |
| Left over | $2,981 | $2,757 | −$224 |
To break even in Waterloo, you'd need to earn
$86,500
Household gross, versus $86,500 today. That's the salary that leaves you exactly as much at the end of the month as Dubuque does now.
The tax difference alone
+$157
A year, in state and local income tax. Effective rates: 23.1% in Dubuque, 22.6% in Waterloo.
More about Waterloo
Dubuque, IA in full
A flat 3.8% state income tax, a median 2-bedroom asking rent of $959 and 204 sunny days; commutes average 17 minutes.
Waterloo, IA in full
A flat 3.8% state income tax, a median 2-bedroom asking rent of $938 and 204 sunny days; commutes average 17 minutes.
The reverse move
Same two cities, but starting from Waterloo on Waterloo wages.
Waterloo → Dubuque →Questions
Is the cost of living lower in Waterloo than Dubuque?
A one-bedroom is about $806 in Dubuque versus $788 in Waterloo. On a one-adult, one-bedroom household, leftover is about $224 a month lower in Waterloo. Change the job or household on the comparison to see your number.
Does Waterloo have state income tax?
Waterloo is in Iowa, which taxes wage income.
What changes if you move from Dubuque to Waterloo?
Take-home pay is recalculated under Iowa 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 Dubuque and Waterloo 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.