Jackson → Iowa City
Relocation analysis based on 7 federal data sources
Should you move?
Moving from Jackson to Iowa City is neutral, depends on priorities: BEA regional price parity goes from 89.0 to 91.5 (US = 100), and HUD 2-bedroom rent falls by $147/mo.
- +$8,848
- BLS median salary higher in Iowa City
- 143 to 238
- violent crimes per 100K (FBI UCR, state-level)
- 13.3:1 to 14.8:1
- NCES student-teacher ratio
- $1,808
- DOL infant care higher / yr in Iowa City
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
- + $147/mo cheaper rent (2BR)
- + $9K higher median salary
- + Fewer environmental violations
Cons of Moving
- - Higher violent crime rate
- - Higher student-teacher ratios
- - More expensive childcare
Purchasing power stays near-even: BEA RPP moves only from 89.0 to 91.5 (ratio 1.03), inside a ±5% band. HUD 2BR Fair Market Rent drops $147/mo ($1,764/yr) from $1,288 in Jackson to $1,141 in Iowa City.
The seven-dimension ledger splits (3 destination wins · 4 origin wins); priorities decide this move. Iowa City sits #59 of 387 metros on PlainRelocate livability (top third of the corpus). Jackson is #60/387 on the same ranking. Composite verdict: Neutral, depends on priorities. Override it with the dimension table below.
BLS OEWS median salary moves $8,848 higher ($57,904 → $66,752). Labor-market size: 261,190 tracked jobs at origin vs 83,600 at destination.
State retirement friendliness favors staying put: Mississippi scores 89 (A, #1/51) vs Iowa at 70 (B, #8/51). 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
- 92
- Property tax
- 75
- Estate tax
- 100
- Healthcare
- 76
- Income tax
- 85
- Property tax
- 58
- Estate tax
- 50
- Healthcare
- 42
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 Jackson to see what you'd need to earn in Iowa City 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