What does WatchPennies calculate?

WatchPennies estimates cost of living by US county across housing, food, transportation, healthcare, childcare, other necessities, taxes, and income context.

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Can I compare two counties on WatchPennies?

Yes. WatchPennies lets you compare counties and adjust salary and family type to estimate relative cost differences.

What does the St. Louis County, MO vs Jackson County, MO comparison show?

It compares estimated living costs by category, including housing, food, transportation, healthcare, childcare, other necessities, taxes, and income context.

Can I change the salary and family type?

Yes. The comparison calculator supports salary and family type inputs so you can model costs for different households.

Does WatchPennies require an account for comparisons?

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St. Louis County, MO vs Jackson County, MO: Cost of Living Difference

Is it cheaper?

Jackson County, MO is cheaper than St. Louis County, MO.

Moving to Jackson County, MO is estimated to save $199 per year.

Cheaper County

Jackson County, MOSave about $199 per year.

Salary needed

$50,000 in St. Louis County, MO is about $49,795 in Jackson County, MO.

Biggest drivers

Healthcare increases by $472 per year. Food saves $346 per year.

Housing: $31 higher in Jackson County, MO

Taxes: $49 lower in Jackson County, MO

Childcare: about the same in both counties

Healthcare: $472 higher in Jackson County, MO

Food: $346 lower in Jackson County, MO

Transport: $208 lower in Jackson County, MO

St. Louis County, MO→Jackson County, MO

Equivalent salary in Jackson County, MO

$49,795

-0.41% lower

Current salary: $50,000

Household: 1 adult · 0 children

Median Income in St. Louis County, MO: $108,392

Median Income in Jackson County, MO: $88,669

Living Index in St. Louis County, MO 44.53%

Living Index in Jackson County, MO 54.22%

This estimate matches your purchasing power (equivalent salary) when moving from St. Louis County, MO to Jackson County, MO.

* Living index is estimated as (estimated total cost / area median income) * 100. A living index above 100% means modeled costs exceed median income.

Cost of Living Breakdown by Category

Summary

Moving from St. Louis County, MO to Jackson County, MO is estimated to save $199 per year. A $50,000 salary in St. Louis County, MO would have similar purchasing power to about $49,795 in Jackson County, MO. The largest savings come from food and transport.

This is a 0.41% decrease in modeled annual costs. Food is $346 per year lower (7.31%); Transport is $208 per year lower (1.78%).

Below we break down the annual categories behind the difference using Economic Policy Institute 2026 Family Budget data.

What changed the most?

The following cards show the annual category differences that most affect the move to Jackson County, MO.

Biggest Cost

Largest annual cost increase when moving to Jackson County, MO

Annual Increase:

$472 per year

HEALTHCARE has the largest annual increase when moving to Jackson County, MO.

Biggest Savings

Largest annual savings when moving to Jackson County, MO

Annual Savings:

$346 per year

FOOD has the largest annual savings when moving to Jackson County, MO.

Breakdown of price percentages per category.

Numbers are average costs per section.

Category	Difference
Housing	0.25% higher
St. Louis County, MO Jackson County, MO Average Cost $12328.00 $12359.00 INFO: Housing costs are based on Department of Housing and Urban Development data. The estimate uses 40th percentile rent for privately owned rental units in each area. Studio apartments are paired with one-adult households, one-bedroom apartments with two-adult households, and two-bedroom apartments with households that have children.
Food	-7.31% lower
St. Louis County, MO Jackson County, MO Average Cost $4731.00 $4385.00 INFO: Food costs are based on the U.S. Department of Agriculture's food plans. Numbers are normalized to each area using Feeding America and Meal Gap data. This estimate assumes most food is bought at local grocery stores and prepared at home.
Transport	-1.78% lower
St. Louis County, MO Jackson County, MO Average Cost $11710.00 $11502.00 INFO: Transportation costs are a combination of auto ownership, auto use, and public transit. Data is collected from the Center for Neighborhood Technology (CNT).
Healthcare	9.45% higher
St. Louis County, MO Jackson County, MO Average Cost $4996.00 $5468.00 INFO: Healthcare expenses come from average insurance premiums and out-of-pocket costs. The estimate assumes families purchase the lowest-cost available insurance plan under the Affordable Care Act. Data comes from Kaiser Family Foundation and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).
Other Costs	-1.83% lower
St. Louis County, MO Jackson County, MO Average Cost $5296.00 $5199.00 INFO: This cost is calculated through the average spending of categories deemed necessary by the Bureau of Labor Statistics Consumer Expenditure Survey. These include apparel, personal care, household supplies, reading materials, and school supplies.
Childcare	0.00% higher
St. Louis County, MO Jackson County, MO Average Cost $0.00 $0.00 INFO: Childcare expenses are based on combined costs for center-based care and family-based care for 4-year-olds and school-aged children. For households with one child, the estimate assumes the child is 4 years old. For households with two children, the estimate assumes the second child is 8 years old.
Taxes	-0.53% lower
St. Louis County, MO Jackson County, MO Average Cost $9210.00 $9161.00 INFO: Taxes are calculated from the National Bureau of Economic Research. The number weighs in personal income tax, state income tax, federal Social Security, and Medicare taxes.

In Jackson County, MO, modeled annual costs are $48,073 compared with $48,272 in St. Louis County, MO.

Overall, annual costs are lower in Jackson County, MO. The category breakdown above shows where the move creates the most room in the budget.

In this case Jackson County, MO and St. Louis County, MO are both metropolitan locations.

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