St. Louis → Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington
Relocation analysis based on 7 federal data sources
Pros of Moving
- + $13K higher median salary
- + Lower violent crime rate
- + Fewer environmental violations
Cons of Moving
- - 10% higher cost of living
- - $793/mo more expensive rent (2BR)
- - Higher student-teacher ratios
Moving from St. Louis to Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington shifts your BEA Regional Price Parity from 95.1 to 104.8 (100 = US average), so a St. Louis salary needs to be multiplied by 1.10 to hold the same purchasing power in Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington. On rent, HUD Fair Market Rent for a 2-bedroom goes from $916/month in St. Louis to $1,709/month in Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington - a higher monthly bill of $793, or $9,516/year. That rent delta alone is often the single biggest line item when relocating.
Wages tell the other half. BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics report a median salary of $68,074 in St. Louis versus $80,598 in Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington - a raw gap of $12,524 higher. The Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington labor market has 1,928,660 tracked jobs against 1,311,920 in St. Louis, shaping how easy it is to find a comparable role. Combine that with the cost-of-living shift above and you get the real purchasing-power delta, sometimes a "higher salary" is actually a pay cut once rent and RPP are applied.
Safety, schools, and childcare round out the move. FBI UCR violent crime rates near St. Louis and Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington are 463 and 259 per 100,000 (state-level). NCES student-teacher ratios run 12.8:1 at origin versus 15.8:1 at destination. Our composite verdict - Neutral — Depends on Priorities - weighs all seven federal sources; the dimension table below lets you override that with your personal priorities.
Salary Adjustment Calculator
Enter your current salary in St. Louis to see what you'd need to earn in Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington to maintain the same purchasing power.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Is Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington more expensive than St. Louis?
What are salaries like in Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington compared to St. Louis?
Is Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington safer than St. Louis?
How much would I need to earn in Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington to match my St. Louis salary?
What does the "Neutral — Depends on Priorities" verdict mean?
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Source: BEA Regional Price Parities, HUD Fair Market Rents, BLS OES, FBI UCR, NCES, DOL, EPA June 2026
Data Sources
- Cost of Living: Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) Regional Price Parities
- Rent: HUD Fair Market Rents (FMR)
- Wages: Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OES)
- Crime: FBI Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) - state level
- Schools: National Center for Education Statistics (NCES)
- Childcare: Department of Labor (DOL) - state level
- Environment: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.