same $100k income, fresh start from Baton Rouge
changea dispatch from
grand rapids
MI
42.96°N
85.67°W
Grand Rapids has won Beer City USA multiple times, hosts ArtPrize (one of the world's largest open art competitions every fall), and built itself on furniture (Steelcase, Herman Miller). The Frederik Meijer Sculpture Park is a sleeper world-class attraction. Downtown is walkable, the surrounding farmland is gorgeous in autumn, and Lake Michigan beaches are 30 minutes west. Quietly excellent.
the verdict
more each month than Baton Rouge ran you
Grand Rapids costs meaningfully more. Whether it earns that back in the day-to-day is the actual question.
a quick ledger.
$1,620/mo
19% more expensive than Baton Rouge(vs $1,361/mo)
4.25%
$104/mo more in state tax than Baton Rouge
vs 3% in Baton Rouge
$6,359/mo
$363 less than Baton Rouge
gross of federal tax. a comparison, not a paycheck.
$353k
41% more expensive than Baton Rouge
vs $250k in Baton Rouge
1.2M
vs 874k in Baton Rouge
field notes, weather & such.
151
pleasant days a year, in grand rapids.
Baton Rouge has the edge here, logging 187 pleasant days a year. The trade is winter: 50 days below 20°, vs 1 in Baton Rouge.
A month here packs 4.6× the events of Baton Rouge.
56/100
12% higher than Baton Rouge
vs 50/100 in Baton Rouge
Closest outdoor draw: White Pine Trail State Park, 5.4 mi.
97/100
29% higher than Baton Rouge
vs 75/100 in Baton Rouge
20
400% more than Baton Rouge
vs 4 nonstops in Baton Rouge
same energy as grand rapids, different zip code:
