01 · the cities
St. Louis
St. Louis has the Arch (catenary curve and engineering marvel), Forest Park (bigger than Central Park and home to a free zoo, art museum, and history museum), and toasted ravioli, which was invented here. The Cardinals are a religion, the Hill neighborhood is wall-to-wall Italian red sauce, and Imo's makes pizza with Provel cheese that locals defend furiously. The skyline at sunset is underrated.
full dispatch→Indianapolis
Indianapolis circles its downtown with a literal loop (the Mile Square) and hosts the Indy 500 every Memorial Day weekend like clockwork. Basketball is woven into the state DNA (Hoosiers, the movie, is essentially a documentary). The Cultural Trail connects six districts on bike-friendly paths through the heart of downtown. The food scene has quietly leveled up.
full dispatch→02 · the money
Median rent
Median rent
$1,411/mo
$1,511/mo
$100/mo more than St. Louis (7%)
Median home price
Median home price
$277k
$296k
$19k more than St. Louis
State income tax
State income tax
4.7%
3.0%
Gross left after rent
Gross left after rent
$6,531/mo
$6,572/mo
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
174 days
174 days
Extreme heat days
Extreme heat days
5 days
0 days
days above 95°F per year
Extreme cold days
Extreme cold days
22 days
30 days
days below 20°F per year
St. Louis has 5 more days above 95°F each year than Indianapolis. Indianapolis drops below 20°F on 8 more days per year than St. Louis.
04 · the life
OutdoorScore
OutdoorScore
68 / 100
62 / 100
6.0 pts behind St. Louis
Nonstop flights
Nonstop flights
60 routes
35 routes
25 fewer direct routes than St. Louis
Metro size
Metro size
2.8M metro
2.1M metro
St. Louis has 1.1x fewer events per month than Indianapolis.
the verdict
5
St. Louis
categories won
3
Indianapolis
categories won
St. Louis leads on lifestyle and wins overall.
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