with $100k coming in, swapping out of Phoenix
changea dispatch from
kansas city
MO
39.10°N
94.58°W
Kansas City is barbecue (burnt ends are a local invention), jazz (the 18th and Vine district fed Charlie Parker and Count Basie), and fountains everywhere you turn. The city straddles two states and doesn't make a big deal out of it. The Plaza shopping district looks like Seville, which is delightfully odd for the Midwest. Friendly here means genuinely friendly.
the verdict
lighter monthly cost than Phoenix
Cost barely budges between Kansas City and Phoenix. Pick this one for the texture of the days, not the math.
a quick ledger.
$1,502/mo
14% cheaper than Phoenix(vs $1,739/mo)
4.7%
$183/mo more in state tax than Phoenix
vs 2.5% in Phoenix
$6,440/mo
$54 more than Phoenix
gross of federal tax. a comparison, not a paycheck.
$326k
29% cheaper than Phoenix
vs $458k in Phoenix
2.2M
vs 5.1M in Phoenix
field notes, weather & such.
170
pleasant days a year, in kansas city.
Phoenix edges ahead with 181 pleasant days. A real winter, not a brutal one: 26 days under 20°, vs 0 in Phoenix.
But the calendar thins out: Phoenix stays 2.4× busier.
56/100
15% lower than Phoenix
vs 66/100 in Phoenix
Closest outdoor draw: Perry State Park, 48.7 mi.
94/100
3% lower than Phoenix
vs 97/100 in Phoenix
43
53% fewer than Phoenix
vs 91 nonstops in Phoenix
neighbors of kansas city on the map of tradeoffs:
