01 · the cities
Durham
Durham is Duke University, old tobacco warehouses turned into incredible restaurants and breweries (the American Tobacco Campus is a model for adaptive reuse), and a food scene that punches way above its size (multiple James Beard winners). Bull City pride runs deep. The Eno River and Duke Gardens are right in town. It's more diverse, weirder, and more interesting than outsiders expect.
full dispatch→Kansas City
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.
full dispatch→02 · the money
Median rent
Median rent
$1,684/mo
$1,502/mo
$182/mo less than Durham (12%)
Median home price
Median home price
$415k
$326k
$89k less than Durham
State income tax
State income tax
4.5%
4.7%
Gross left after rent
Gross left after rent
$6,274/mo
$6,440/mo
Kansas City has $166/mo more gross after rent at $100k
Gross left after rent reflects state income tax but not federal, based on $100k salary. Enter your salary to find your ideal city.
03 · the weather
Pleasant days/yr
Pleasant days/yr
178 days
170 days
8 fewer than Durham
Extreme heat days
Extreme heat days
19 days
8 days
days above 95°F per year
Extreme cold days
Extreme cold days
5 days
26 days
days below 20°F per year
Durham has 11 more days above 95°F each year than Kansas City. Kansas City drops below 20°F on 21 more days per year than Durham.
04 · the life
OutdoorScore
OutdoorScore
50 / 100
56 / 100
6.0 pts ahead of Durham
Nonstop flights
Nonstop flights
39 routes
43 routes
4 more direct routes than Durham
Metro size
Metro size
609k metro
2.2M metro
Durham has 2.4x fewer events per month than Kansas City.
the verdict
3
Durham
categories won
6
Kansas City
categories won
Kansas City wins on money and lifestyle. Durham has the edge on weather.
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