Moving to Mississippi from Alabama

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What to Expect

A comprehensive look at what changes when you move from Alabama to Mississippi — from daily expenses to quality of life.

If you moved from Alabama to Mississippi, you would find that Mississippi is 4.2% cheaper than Alabama. A $75,000 salary in Alabama would need to be roughly $74,379 in Mississippi to maintain the same lifestyle.

How Far Will Your Money Go?

How your spending power changes when you relocate from Alabama to Mississippi.

What does your salary buy?

$75,000 $74,379

To maintain the same standard of living in Mississippi

Calculate with your salary →

The biggest cost differences at a glance

Restaurants

pay 9.1% less

Groceries

pay 7.6% less

Transportation

pay 3.6% less

Housing

pay 3.3% more

Childcare

pay 10.8% less

Entertainment and Sports

pay 8.4% less

See full cost of living breakdown

Data: MyLifeElsewhere's crowdsourced cost of living database, with prices submitted and updated by users worldwide. Exchange rates are refreshed regularly from public sources.

Key Indicator Comparison

How Alabama and Mississippi stack up on safety, healthcare, jobs, and infrastructure.

Is it safe?

Violent crime rate FBI Uniform Crime Reporting, 2023

incidents per 100,000 people per year

AL
397
MS
202
Property crime rate FBI Uniform Crime Reporting, 2023

incidents per 100,000 people per year

AL
1671
MS
1579

Mississippi performs significantly better than Alabama across all safety metrics.

How's the healthcare?

Uninsured rate US Census Bureau (American Community Survey), 2023

share of people without health insurance

AL
9.0%
MS
11.3%
Adult obesity rate Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (PLACES), 2022

share of adults with obesity

AL
39.6%
MS
41.9%

Alabama performs better than Mississippi across all health & wellbeing metrics.

What about housing?

Median home value US Census Bureau (American Community Survey), 2023

typical price of a home

AL
$195,100
MS
$161,400
Median rent US Census Bureau (American Community Survey), 2023

typical monthly gross rent

AL
$963
MS
$923

Mississippi generally does better on what about housing?, though Alabama leads in homeownership rate.

Will I have good infrastructure?

Internet access US Census Bureau (American Community Survey), 2023

share of households with internet

AL
85.9%
MS
82.0%
Average commute US Census Bureau (American Community Survey), 2023

minutes each way to work

AL
25 min
MS
26 min

Alabama performs better than Mississippi across all infrastructure metrics.

What are the job prospects?

Unemployment rate Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2025

percentage of the labour force without work

AL
2.3%
MS
3.1%
GDP per capita Bureau of Economic Analysis, 2024

a broad measure of economic output per person

AL
$49,225
MS
$41,778

Alabama performs better than Mississippi across all employment & economy metrics.

Is it good for families?

Life expectancy OECD Regional Demography, 2020

average years of life at birth

AL
73.2 yrs
MS
71.9 yrs
Bachelor's degree or higher US Census Bureau (American Community Survey), 2023

share of adults with a 4-year college degree

AL
18%
MS
16%

Alabama performs better than Mississippi across all family life metrics.

Data: Bureau of Economic Analysis, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (PLACES), FBI Uniform Crime Reporting, OECD Regional Demography, US Census Bureau (American Community Survey)

What's the Climate Like?

Monthly averages — select a city to compare.

Montgomery Rain: 53.1 in/yr (1348 mm)
76° / 54°F

Avg. annual high / low

Jackson Rain: 54.3 in/yr (1380 mm)
76° / 55°F

Avg. annual high / low

Months Montgomery Jackson
Jan–Mar 63°/40°F (17°/4°C) 62°/41°F (17°/5°C)
Apr–Jun 84°/60°F (29°/16°C) 83°/62°F (28°/17°C)
Jul–Sep 90°/69°F (32°/21°C) 90°/70°F (32°/21°C)
Oct–Dec 69°/45°F (21°/7°C) 67°/46°F (20°/8°C)
View all months
Month Montgomery Jackson
Jan 57°/36°F (14.1°/2.1°C) 56°/37°F (13.6°/2.7°C)
Feb 62°/39°F (16.6°/4.0°C) 61°/40°F (16.1°/4.6°C)
Mar 70°/45°F (20.9°/7.4°C) 68°/47°F (20.2°/8.2°C)
Apr 77°/52°F (24.8°/10.9°C) 76°/54°F (24.4°/12.1°C)
May 84°/61°F (28.9°/15.9°C) 83°/63°F (28.3°/17.1°C)
Jun 90°/68°F (32.1°/20.1°C) 89°/69°F (31.8°/20.8°C)
Jul 92°/71°F (33.4°/21.9°C) 92°/72°F (33.1°/22.4°C)
Aug 92°/71°F (33.3°/21.7°C) 92°/72°F (33.1°/22.2°C)
Sep 87°/65°F (30.7°/18.4°C) 87°/66°F (30.3°/18.9°C)
Oct 78°/53°F (25.7°/11.9°C) 77°/55°F (25.1°/12.8°C)
Nov 69°/44°F (20.6°/6.6°C) 67°/45°F (19.7°/7.3°C)
Dec 60°/37°F (15.3°/3.0°C) 58°/39°F (14.7°/3.9°C)

Data: National Weather Service National Weather Service

Frequently Asked Questions

Is it cheaper to live in Mississippi than Alabama?

Headline costs are within a few percent between Mississippi and Alabama; rent and dining are where you'll actually feel differences.

How much money do I need to move to Mississippi?

A safe rule of thumb is 3 months of local expenses plus relocation costs. On a $75,000 comparable salary, that's around $18,595 in Mississippi for everyday spending, before movers, a truck rental, and a rental deposit.

Is Mississippi safe?

Mississippi performs significantly better than Alabama across all safety metrics.

How is healthcare in Mississippi compared to Alabama?

Alabama performs better than Mississippi across all health & wellbeing metrics.

What's the weather like in Mississippi compared to Alabama?

The average high temperature in Jackson is 76°F, compared to 76°F in Montgomery. Jackson receives around 54.3 in of rainfall per year, while Montgomery gets 53.1 in.

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