01 · the cities
Knoxville
Knoxville is the gateway to the Great Smoky Mountains (the most-visited national park in the country, 30 minutes east), the University of Tennessee's Vol energy, and the gold-roofed Sunsphere left over from the 1982 World's Fair. Market Square downtown is brick, patios, and a Saturday farmers market that takes over the whole space. The food and bar scene has come into its own. The mountains do the heavy lifting.
full dispatch→El Paso
El Paso has the Franklin Mountains running right through the middle of the city (which is rare), with hiking trails inside city limits and the desert wide open just past the suburbs. The Mexican food is exceptional in ways that the rest of Texas doesn't quite match (it's true regional border food). Ciudad Juarez is literally next door across the Rio Grande. The light at sunset is unreal.
full dispatch→02 · the money
Median rent
Median rent
$1,731/mo
$1,473/mo
$258/mo less than Knoxville (18%)
Median home price
Median home price
$364k
$231k
$132k less than Knoxville
State income tax
State income tax
0%
0%
Gross left after rent
Gross left after rent
$6,602/mo
$6,860/mo
El Paso has $258/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
189 days
222 days
33 more than Knoxville
Extreme heat days
Extreme heat days
3 days
60 days
days above 95°F per year
Extreme cold days
Extreme cold days
9 days
1 days
days below 20°F per year
El Paso has 57 more days above 95°F each year than Knoxville. Knoxville drops below 20°F on 8 more days per year than El Paso.
04 · the life
OutdoorScore
OutdoorScore
69 / 100
65 / 100
4.0 pts behind Knoxville
Nonstop flights
Nonstop flights
17 routes
13 routes
4 fewer direct routes than Knoxville
Metro size
Metro size
947k metro
872k metro
Knoxville has 1.4x more events per month than El Paso.
the verdict
3
Knoxville
categories won
5
El Paso
categories won
El Paso wins on money and weather. Knoxville has the edge on lifestyle.
run your numbers
How far does your Knoxville salary go?
Enter your salary to see a full ranked list of cities where you would live better.
see your top citiesWe use a proprietary blend of data from the US Census, Zillow, Ticketmaster, and more.
Walk Score® is a trademark of Walk Score, a Redfin company. How Walk Score works