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Crunching costs, sorting signals, rendering insights.
Crunching costs, sorting signals, rendering insights.
Families relocating within Kansas face a complex equation: income, housing costs, healthcare, and quality schools. We ran the numbers on 4 cities. Wichita — index 87, rent $1,125/mo, healthcare index 90 — ranks #1 on our family-weighted model.
#1 Ranked: Wichita — cost index 87, rent $1,125/mo, income $63,072
Wichita rent up 4% over the past year
Family-weighted scoring: income $63,072, healthcare index 90, population 396,119 — balancing career, care, and schools
Data sourced from Census Bureau, Zillow, BLS, and Tax Foundation — current as of 2026
Families relocating within Kansas face a complex equation: income, housing costs, healthcare, and quality schools. We ran the numbers on 4 cities. Wichita — index 87, rent $1,125/mo, healthcare index 90 — ranks #1 on our family-weighted model.
Wichita is one of the cheaper options here. Rent is $1,125/month, which is lower than most cities in this ranking. The cost index is 87. Income sits at $63,072. That's more or less in line with the region.
One more layer before the full breakdown: Across Kansas, the average cost of living index is 98 — 14 points below the national median. Known for plains affordability with steady incomes, the state offers 4 tracked cities with median rents averaging $1,438/month. That's $457 less than the national average of $1,895. At this level, the city practically pays for your move.
Bottom line: Wichita leads this ranking for clear, data-backed reasons — but the "best" city depends on your priorities. Click into any city below to see the full detail page with 12-month trend charts, profession-specific salary data, and a breakdown of all five cost categories. If you're seriously considering a move, use our salary calculator to model your specific income against these numbers.
396,119 residents · Kansas
Why Wichita ranks #1: the numbers tell a clear story. And in most cases, at 87 on the cost index, residents save roughly 25% less than the typical American. Rent sits at $1,125/month — for better or worse — while the median household pulls in $63,072/year. The Housing category is particularly strong at 68, though Healthcare (90) lags behind. Home prices average $198,074 — $269,296 below the national median (that's pre-tax, of course).
125,475 residents · Kansas
Here's Topeka by the numbers — and there's a lot to like (and a little to watch). Cost index: 87. Rent: $1,169/month. Income: $55,902/year. Home price: $186,856. Population: 125,475. The strongest category is Housing at 68; the most expensive is Healthcare at 90. Translate that rent to annual numbers, and residents are saving renters $8,712 per year vs. the national median. That adds up much faster than people realize.
197,089 residents · Kansas
Why Overland Park ranks #3: the numbers tell a clear story. At 108 on the cost index, residents save roughly 4% less than the typical American. Rent sits at $1,666/month — for better or worse — while the median household pulls in $103,838/year. The Utilities category is particularly strong at 100, though Housing (120) lags behind. Home prices average $470,417 — $3,047 above the national median.
147,461 residents · Kansas
So, Olathe. Cost index of 108, rent at $1,792/month. It's lower than the national average. Median income is $112,232, which is above average. You get the picture.
Our persona scoring model weights cost of living, income, rent, healthcare costs, tax burden, and population size differently based on what matters most to families. Each factor contributes 10-25 points to a 0-100 composite score. Cities with the highest composite rank first. All data is sourced from federal agencies and verified research institutions. Cost of living indices are normalized to 100 (national median) using Zillow rent as the primary signal, with sub-category adjustments derived from regional BLS price data. Rankings are updated monthly as new data is released.
Wichita ranks #1 in Kansas for this analysis with a cost index of 87 and median income of $63,072.
Wichita scores highest for families due to its below-average cost of living, median rent of $1,125/mo, and competitive median income of $63,072.
Our cost of living index uses real Zillow rent data as the foundation, indexed to 100 (national median). Sub-categories (housing, food, transport, utilities, healthcare) are derived from the overall index with regional adjustments. Data is updated monthly.
Wichita (ranked #1) has a cost index of 87 and rent of $1,125/mo, while Olathe (ranked #4) has a cost index of 108 and rent of $1,792/mo — a 21-point difference in cost of living.
City data is refreshed monthly from Census Bureau population estimates, Zillow rent and home price indices, BLS salary data, and Tax Foundation tax rates. Last updated: 2026.
The median 1-bedroom rent in Wichita is $1,125/month as of 2026, based on Zillow's Observed Rent Index. This is $770 below the national median of $1,895/month.
The median home price in Wichita is $198,074, which is 3.1× the local median income. That's within the standard 3.5× affordability rule for most local earners. The national median home price is $467,370.
Kansas has a 5.7% state income tax rate. Combined state and local sales tax averages 8.7%, and the effective property tax rate is 1.28%.
This ranking was generated using data current as of early 2026. Population and income data comes from the Census Bureau's American Community Survey (5-year estimates). Rent and home price data is from Zillow's monthly releases. Tax rates are from the Tax Foundation's 2025 edition. Rankings are refreshed monthly.