Moving from Rhode Island to Illinois
Rhode Island to Illinois is a move of about 1,157 miles. Median rent is $1,274 a month in Illinois and $1,342 in Rhode Island, and the median home is $263,300 against $404,200. State income tax is a flat 4.95% in Illinois and up to 5.99% in Rhode Island. Property tax runs 2.01% of home value in Illinois and 1.21% in Rhode Island.
Moving to Illinois costs about
$90/mo
less than Rhode Island each month, renting on a $80,000 household income
Not your income? Run it on your own numbers
Worth knowing
A cheaper house in Illinois, a bigger property tax bill
The median home in Illinois costs $263,300 against $404,200 in Rhode Island, but you would pay about $5,292 a year in property tax rather than $4,891. The rate more than cancels the lower price.
Rhode Island vs Illinois at a glance
| Rhode Island | Illinois | |
|---|---|---|
| Median home value | $404,200 | $263,300 |
| Median rent | $1,342/mo | $1,274/mo |
| State income tax | Up to 5.99% | Flat 4.95% |
| Property tax rate | 1.21% | 2.01% |
| Groceries, gas & goods | 97 | 104 |
| Utilities | 147 | 85 |
Price levels are indexes where 100 is the national average. They cover everyday spending only; housing is the two rows above.
Monthly cost of living: Rhode Island vs Illinois
| Monthly | RI | IL | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | |||
| Housing (median rent) | $1,342 | $1,274 | -$68 |
| Taxes | |||
| State income tax | $199 | $318 | +$119 |
| Sales tax (on everyday spending) | $111 | $95 | -$16 |
| Everyday costs | |||
| Groceries, gas & goods | $1,781 | $1,904 | +$123 |
| UtilitiesBiggest factor | $599 | $347 | -$252 |
| Total | -$94 | ||
Cost to move from Rhode Island to Illinois
$2,400 to $5,400
From a container you load yourself up to full-service movers.
Shipping one car adds about $650 to $1,000, against roughly $400 in fuel and lodging to drive it the 3-day trip yourself.
These are statewide figures. Providence is not Rhode Island-average and Chicago is not Illinois-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
What jobs pay in Illinois, after the cost of living
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.