Moving from Illinois to Nevada
Everyone compares rent and groceries. Almost nobody compares the two numbers that actually decide whether a move works: state income tax and property tax. Here is Illinois and Nevada, side by side.
Moving to Nevada costs about
-$110/mo
less than Illinois each month, renting
Worth knowing
Homes cost 1.7x more in Nevada, but the tax rate is lower
Nevada taxes property at 0.47% against 2.01% in Illinois. Despite the far higher prices, you would actually pay LESS property tax there: about $2,046 a year against $5,292.
Illinois vs Nevada at a glance
| Illinois | Nevada | |
|---|---|---|
| Median home price | $263,300 | $435,400 |
| Median rent | $1,274/mo | $1,597/mo |
| State income tax | Flat 4.95% | No state income tax |
| Property tax rate | 2.01% | 0.47% |
| Groceries, gas & goods | 104 | 96 |
| Utilities | 85 | 91 |
Price levels are indexes where 100 is the national average. They cover everyday spending only; housing is the two rows above.
What changes each month
| Monthly | IL | NV | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | |||
| Housing (median rent) | $1,274 | $1,597 | +$323 |
| Taxes | |||
| State income tax | $318 | $0 | -$318 |
| Sales tax (on everyday spending) | $95 | $100 | +$6 |
| Everyday costs | |||
| Groceries, gas & goods | $1,904 | $1,765 | -$139 |
| Utilities | $347 | $370 | +$23 |
| Total | -$110 | ||
What the move itself costs
$3,200 to $6,900
From a container you load yourself up to full-service movers.
Shipping one car adds about $800 to $1,200, against roughly $600 in fuel and lodging to drive it the 4-day trip yourself.
These are statewide figures. Chicago is not Illinois-average and Las Vegas is not Nevada-average, so a specific city can look nothing like its state. Compare metro areas instead to narrow it to 387 real places, including which side of a state line you would live on.
Run this with your own numbers
Estimates only, not advice. Housing and income figures come from the U.S. Census Bureau's American Community Survey (2024); price levels from the Bureau of Economic Analysis (2024); tax rates are for the 2026 tax year, compiled from state revenue departments and the Tax Foundation. Moving costs are modelled from published ranges rather than quoted. Every figure is a statewide median or average and will not match any particular household.