Cape Girardeau → Grand Forks
Relocation analysis based on 7 federal data sources
Should you move?
Moving from Cape Girardeau to Grand Forks is favorable: BEA regional price parity goes from 86.1 to 86.7 (US = 100), and HUD 2-bedroom rent rises by $97/mo.
- +$10,829
- BLS median salary higher in Grand Forks
- 463 to 257
- violent crimes per 100K (FBI UCR, state-level)
- 12.8:1 to 11.8:1
- NCES student-teacher ratio
BEA Regional Price Parity, HUD Fair Market Rent, BLS OEWS, FBI UCR, NCES, and DOL. The table below lets you override the composite with your own priorities.
Pros of Moving
- + $11K higher median salary
- + Lower violent crime rate
- + Fewer environmental violations
Cons of Moving
- - $97/mo more expensive rent (2BR)
Purchasing power stays near-even: BEA RPP moves only from 86.1 to 86.7 (ratio 1.01), inside a ±5% band. HUD 2BR Fair Market Rent rises $97/mo ($1,164/yr) from $992 in Cape Girardeau to $1,089 in Grand Forks.
The seven-dimension ledger splits (4 destination wins · 2 origin wins); priorities decide this move. Grand Forks sits #1 of 387 metros on PlainRelocate livability (top third of the corpus). Cape Girardeau is #91/387 on the same ranking. Composite verdict: Favorable. Override it with the dimension table below.
BLS OEWS median salary moves $10,829 higher ($55,399 → $66,228). Labor-market size: 37,860 tracked jobs at origin vs 46,030 at destination.
State retirement friendliness is near-even: Missouri 68 (C, #12/51) vs North Dakota 69 (C, #9/51). Full state tax and healthcare sub-scores sit in the retirement desk below.
State retirement friendliness
Primary-state scores from PlainRelocate's retirement registry (tax + healthcare + climate composite). Metro pairs use each metro's primary state abbreviation.
- Income tax
- 82
- Property tax
- 68
- Estate tax
- 100
- Healthcare
- 80
- Income tax
- 75
- Property tax
- 59
- Estate tax
- 100
- Healthcare
- 94
Full retirement ranking · Source composite documented on methodology (Tax Foundation + AARP tax guides + federal healthcare/climate inputs).
Salary Adjustment Calculator
Enter your current salary in Cape Girardeau to see what you'd need to earn in Grand Forks to maintain the same purchasing power.
Grand Forks metro profile · Livability rankings · Methodology
Source: BEA Regional Price Parities, HUD Fair Market Rents, BLS OES, FBI UCR, NCES, DOL, EPA; retirement desk: Tax Foundation + AARP tax guides June 2026