Columbia → Jonesboro
Relocation analysis based on 7 federal data sources
Should you move?
Moving from Columbia to Jonesboro is neutral, depends on priorities: BEA regional price parity goes from 89.4 to 85.9 (US = 100), and HUD 2-bedroom rent falls by $120/mo.
- -$6,496
- BLS median salary lower in Jonesboro
- 463 to 580
- violent crimes per 100K (FBI UCR, state-level)
- 12.8:1 to 13.6:1
- 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
- + 4% lower cost of living
- + $120/mo cheaper rent (2BR)
Cons of Moving
- - $6K lower median salary
- - Higher violent crime rate
Purchasing power stays near-even: BEA RPP moves only from 89.4 to 85.9 (ratio 0.96), inside a ±5% band. HUD 2BR Fair Market Rent drops $120/mo ($1,440/yr) from $1,160 in Columbia to $1,040 in Jonesboro.
The seven-dimension ledger splits (3 destination wins · 3 origin wins); priorities decide this move. Jonesboro sits #74 of 387 metros on PlainRelocate livability (top third of the corpus). Columbia is #89/387 on the same ranking. Composite verdict: Neutral, depends on priorities. Override it with the dimension table below.
BLS OEWS median salary moves $6,496 lower ($61,908 → $55,412). Labor-market size: 99,550 tracked jobs at origin vs 55,350 at destination.
State retirement friendliness is near-even: Missouri 68 (C, #12/51) vs Arkansas 74 (B, #6/51). 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
- 78
- Estate tax
- 100
- Healthcare
- 68
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 Columbia to see what you'd need to earn in Jonesboro to maintain the same purchasing power.
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