$100k salary, packing up from St. Louis
changea dispatch from
tucson
AZ
32.25°N
110.91°W
Tucson is the first U.S. city named a UNESCO City of Gastronomy, and the Sonoran hot dogs alone justify the trip. The saguaros stand around like skinny green sentries, the mountains ring the city in every direction, and the sunsets do that thing where the whole sky turns watermelon. The University of Arizona keeps the energy young. The monsoons in July are genuinely thrilling, and the dry desert nights keep the patios full long after dark.
in our guides
the verdict
below St. Louis's monthly cost
Tucson and St. Louis land close on cost. The reasons to move are about how you'd live, not what you'd save.
a quick ledger.
$1,444/mo
2% more expensive than St. Louis(vs $1,411/mo)
2.5%
$183/mo less in state tax than St. Louis
vs 4.7% in St. Louis
$6,681/mo
$150 more than St. Louis
gross of federal tax. a comparison, not a paycheck.
$352k
27% more expensive than St. Louis
vs $277k in St. Louis
1.1M
vs 2.8M in St. Louis
field notes, weather & such.
202
pleasant days a year, in tucson.
St. Louis only logs 174 pleasant days. Heat is the cost: 94 days top 95° vs St. Louis's 5.
But the calendar thins out: St. Louis stays 2.4× busier.
66/100
3% lower than St. Louis
vs 68/100 in St. Louis
Closest outdoor draw: Saguaro National Park, 16.6 mi.
67/100
23% lower than St. Louis
vs 87/100 in St. Louis
16
73% fewer than St. Louis
vs 60 nonstops in St. Louis
cities that play in tucson's register:
compare tucson with:
