Moving from Montana to Louisiana
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 Montana and Louisiana, side by side.
Moving to Louisiana costs about
-$90/mo
less than Montana each month, renting
Worth knowing
The move pays for itself in about 42 months
Moving costs somewhere around $3,767, and Louisiana runs about $90 a month cheaper. After roughly 42 months you are ahead.
Montana vs Louisiana at a glance
| Montana | Louisiana | |
|---|---|---|
| Median home price | $375,800 | $216,500 |
| Median rent | $1,081/mo | $1,064/mo |
| State income tax | Up to 5.65% | Flat 3.00% |
| Property tax rate | 0.72% | 0.55% |
| Groceries, gas & goods | 96 | 94 |
| Utilities | 72 | 71 |
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 | MT | LA | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | |||
| Housing (median rent) | $1,081 | $1,064 | -$17 |
| Taxes | |||
| State income taxBiggest factor | $263 | $168 | -$95 |
| Sales tax (on everyday spending) | $0 | $70 | +$70 |
| Everyday costs | |||
| Groceries, gas & goods | $1,760 | $1,718 | -$42 |
| Utilities | $295 | $292 | -$3 |
| Total | -$90 | ||
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 $1,150, against roughly $600 in fuel and lodging to drive it the 4-day trip yourself.
These are statewide figures. Billings is not Montana-average and New Orleans is not Louisiana-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.