Moving from Tennessee to Missouri
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 Tennessee and Missouri, side by side.
Moving to Missouri costs about
+$90/mo
more than Tennessee each month, renting
Worth knowing
A cheaper house in Missouri, a bigger property tax bill
The median home in Missouri costs $230,300 against $286,700 in Tennessee, but you would pay about $1,958 a year in property tax rather than $1,434. The rate more than cancels the lower price.
Tennessee vs Missouri at a glance
| Tennessee | Missouri | |
|---|---|---|
| Median home price | $286,700 | $230,300 |
| Median rent | $1,189/mo | $1,033/mo |
| State income tax | No state income tax | Up to 4.70% |
| Property tax rate | 0.50% | 0.85% |
| Groceries, gas & goods | 96 | 96 |
| Utilities | 72 | 79 |
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 | TN | MO | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | |||
| Housing (median rent) | $1,189 | $1,033 | -$156 |
| Taxes | |||
| State income taxBiggest factor | $0 | $235 | +$235 |
| Local income tax (state average) | None | $15 | +$15 |
| Sales tax (on everyday spending) | $99 | $60 | -$39 |
| Everyday costs | |||
| Groceries, gas & goods | $1,765 | $1,765 | +$1 |
| Utilities | $295 | $324 | +$30 |
| Total | +$90 | ||
What the move itself costs
$1,600 to $3,900
From a container you load yourself up to full-service movers.
Shipping one car adds about $500 to $750, against roughly $50 in fuel and lodging to drive it the 1-day trip yourself.
These are statewide figures. Nashville is not Tennessee-average and St. Louis is not Missouri-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.