Seattle, WA → St. Louis, MO
Moving to St. Louis costs you $750 a month
−$9,000 a year for the same registered nurse, the same household size, and the same number of bedrooms.
| Per month | Seattle | St. Louis | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gross pay | $9,375 | $7,578 | −$1,797 |
| Income and payroll tax | $2,081 | $1,903 | −$178 |
| Take-home pay | $7,294 | $5,675 | −$1,619 |
| Rent | $1,761 | $1,144 | −$617 |
| Getting around | $493 | $545 | +$52 |
| Groceries | $452 | $368 | −$84 |
| Healthcare | $508 | $414 | −$94 |
| Utilities | $283 | $230 | −$53 |
| Everything else | $395 | $322 | −$73 |
| Left over | $3,402 | $2,652 | −$750 |
To break even in St. Louis, you'd need to earn
$105,000
Household gross, versus $112,500 today. That's the salary that leaves you exactly as much at the end of the month as Seattle does now.
The tax difference alone
−$4,257
A year, in state and local income tax. Effective rates: 22.2% in Seattle, 25.1% in St. Louis.
Seattle, WA in full
No state income tax and high wages, offset by home prices and 150 sunny days.
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 → Seattle →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.