State Comparison Tool
Two states, every number that matters, side by side. Taxes, housing, wages and cost of living from published federal sources.
Comparisons
27 pairs covering the corridors people actually move along, rather than every possible permutation.
All 50 states, ranked by total tax burden
State income tax on $100,000 plus property tax on that state’s own median home.
| # | State | Income tax | Property tax | Combined | COL index |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tennessee | $0 | $1,763 | $1,763 | 88.9 |
| 2 | Wyoming | $0 | $1,977 | $1,977 | 93.7 |
| 3 | Nevada | $0 | $2,240 | $2,240 | 100.7 |
| 4 | Florida | $0 | $2,948 | $2,948 | 100.7 |
| 5 | South Dakota | $0 | $3,260 | $3,260 | 94.1 |
| 6 | Alaska | $0 | $3,769 | $3,769 | 129 |
| 7 | Louisiana | $3,000 | $1,199 | $4,199 | 91.1 |
| 8 | Texas | $0 | $4,242 | $4,242 | 90.7 |
| 9 | Washington | $0 | $4,523 | $4,523 | 114.6 |
| 10 | Arizona | $2,500 | $2,030 | $4,530 | 107.6 |
| 11 | Indiana | $2,950 | $1,991 | $4,941 | 88.3 |
| 12 | Mississippi | $4,000 | $1,148 | $5,148 | 86.2 |
| 13 | Arkansas | $3,900 | $1,282 | $5,182 | 89.1 |
| 14 | North Dakota | $2,500 | $2,705 | $5,205 | 90.7 |
| 15 | Kentucky | $3,500 | $1,739 | $5,239 | 92.5 |
| 16 | West Virginia | $4,580 | $933 | $5,513 | 87.9 |
| 17 | Alabama | $5,000 | $895 | $5,895 | 85 |
| 18 | Ohio | $2,750 | $3,427 | $6,177 | 93.7 |
| 19 | North Carolina | $3,990 | $2,244 | $6,234 | 96.6 |
| 20 | Oklahoma | $4,500 | $1,778 | $6,278 | 83.5 |
| 21 | South Carolina | $5,210 | $1,514 | $6,724 | 91.9 |
| 22 | Pennsylvania | $3,070 | $3,704 | $6,774 | 96.2 |
| 23 | Iowa | $3,800 | $3,205 | $7,005 | 88.6 |
| 24 | Utah | $4,500 | $2,602 | $7,102 | 100.6 |
| 25 | Colorado | $4,400 | $2,715 | $7,115 | 101.8 |
| 26 | Missouri | $4,700 | $2,421 | $7,121 | 88.6 |
| 27 | Michigan | $4,250 | $3,213 | $7,463 | 93.9 |
| 28 | Georgia | $4,990 | $2,647 | $7,637 | 90.6 |
| 29 | Idaho | $5,300 | $2,410 | $7,710 | 101.7 |
| 30 | New Hampshire | $0 | $7,845 | $7,845 | 110.1 |
| 31 | New Mexico | $5,900 | $2,022 | $7,922 | 89.9 |
| 32 | Montana | $5,650 | $2,904 | $8,554 | 105.9 |
| 33 | Nebraska | $4,550 | $4,090 | $8,640 | 91.3 |
| 34 | Kansas | $5,580 | $3,061 | $8,641 | 87.6 |
| 35 | Delaware | $6,600 | $2,225 | $8,825 | 101.7 |
| 36 | Virginia | $5,750 | $3,276 | $9,026 | 99.1 |
| 37 | Maryland | $6,500 | $4,011 | $10,511 | 121.1 |
| 38 | Illinois | $4,950 | $5,621 | $10,571 | 95.1 |
| 39 | Maine | $7,150 | $4,155 | $11,305 | 114.6 |
| 40 | Rhode Island | $5,990 | $5,790 | $11,780 | 111.2 |
| 41 | Wisconsin | $7,650 | $4,514 | $12,164 | 97.4 |
| 42 | Minnesota | $9,850 | $3,570 | $13,420 | 93.4 |
| 43 | Hawaii | $11,000 | $2,427 | $13,427 | 184.8 |
| 44 | Oregon | $9,900 | $4,082 | $13,982 | 109.6 |
| 45 | Connecticut | $6,990 | $7,007 | $13,997 | 114.2 |
| 46 | Vermont | $8,750 | $6,070 | $14,820 | 113 |
| 47 | Massachusetts | $9,000 | $6,730 | $15,730 | 147.8 |
| 48 | New York | $10,900 | $6,838 | $17,738 | 124.7 |
| 49 | California | $13,300 | $5,432 | $18,732 | 140.5 |
| 50 | New Jersey | $10,750 | $10,998 | $21,748 | 118.8 |
How these are built
Pairwise comparison is inherently unique: each page is a genuine 2-way join over real data, so no two pages can share prose without sharing both states. This cluster had the BEST post-incident survival on statecalc (11.2%), which is direct evidence the format holds up. Pairs are capped to real demand rather than emitting all 1,225 combinations.
Every figure is pulled from the same verified dataset and computed the same way for both states, so the comparison is like-for-like. See sources.
Last reviewed 2026-08-26.