Moving from Missouri to Arizona
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 Missouri and Arizona, side by side.
Moving to Arizona costs about
+$470/mo
more than Missouri each month, renting
Worth knowing
Homes cost 1.7x more in Arizona, but the tax rate is lower
Arizona taxes property at 0.48% against 0.85% in Missouri. Despite the far higher prices, you would actually pay LESS property tax there: about $1,894 a year against $1,958.
Missouri vs Arizona at a glance
| Missouri | Arizona | |
|---|---|---|
| Median home price | $230,300 | $394,500 |
| Median rent | $1,033/mo | $1,543/mo |
| State income tax | Up to 4.70% | Flat 2.50% |
| Property tax rate | 0.85% | 0.48% |
| Groceries, gas & goods | 96 | 95 |
| Utilities | 79 | 92 |
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 | MO | AZ | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | |||
| Housing (median rent)Biggest factor | $1,033 | $1,543 | +$510 |
| Taxes | |||
| State income tax | $235 | $149 | -$86 |
| Local income tax (state average) | $15 | None | -$15 |
| Sales tax (on everyday spending) | $60 | $84 | +$23 |
| Everyday costs | |||
| Groceries, gas & goods | $1,765 | $1,748 | -$17 |
| Utilities | $324 | $377 | +$53 |
| Total | +$470 | ||
What the move itself costs
$2,700 to $5,900
From a container you load yourself up to full-service movers.
Shipping one car adds about $800 to $1,150, against roughly $450 in fuel and lodging to drive it the 3-day trip yourself.
These are statewide figures. St. Louis is not Missouri-average and Phoenix is not Arizona-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.