Moving to Idaho from Illinois
What to Expect
Everything you need to know before relocating from Illinois to Idaho — costs, safety, healthcare, and practical first steps.
If you moved from Illinois to Idaho, you would find that Idaho is 6.3% cheaper than Illinois. A $75,000 salary in Illinois would need to be roughly $70,300 in Idaho to maintain the same lifestyle. Chicago and Idaho Falls are about 1,250 mi apart.
Is Idaho cheaper than Illinois?
Where you'll feel the difference day-to-day
Restaurants
pay 5.2% less
Groceries
pay 7.2% less
Transportation
pay 12.4% less
Housing
pay 1.5% less
Childcare
pay 14.1% less
Entertainment and Sports
pay 1.8% less
Data: MyLifeElsewhere's crowdsourced cost of living database, with prices submitted and updated by users worldwide. Exchange rates are refreshed regularly from public sources.
What salary do you need in Idaho?
What does your salary buy?
$75,000 → $70,300
To maintain the same standard of living in Idaho
Calculate with your salary →Cost of living by city
Cost of living varies a lot by city. Each figure is a city's overall cost of living as a percentage of New York City (the priciest, = 100%).
On average, cities in Idaho cost about 1% more than cities in Illinois.
Compare cities head-to-head
Key Indicator Comparison
Key indicators for anyone considering a move from Illinois to Idaho.
Is it safe?
incidents per 100,000 people per year
incidents per 100,000 people per year
Idaho performs significantly better than Illinois across all safety metrics.
How's the healthcare?
share of people without health insurance
share of adults with obesity
share of adults with diabetes
share of adults who smoke
Idaho generally does better on health & wellbeing, though Illinois leads in uninsured rate.
What about housing?
typical price of a home
typical monthly gross rent
share of homes that are owner-occupied
Idaho generally does better on what about housing?, though Illinois leads in median home value.
Will I have good infrastructure?
share of households with internet
minutes each way to work
Idaho performs significantly better than Illinois across all infrastructure metrics.
What are the job prospects?
percentage of the labour force without work
a broad measure of economic output per person
typical annual income of a household
share of people below the poverty line
Illinois generally does better on employment & economy, though Idaho leads in unemployment rate.
Is it good for families?
average years of life at birth
share of adults with a 4-year college degree
Illinois generally does better on family life, though Idaho leads in life expectancy.
Sources: US Census Bureau (American Community Survey) (2023), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (PLACES) (2022), FBI Uniform Crime Reporting (2023), Bureau of Labor Statistics (2025), Bureau of Economic Analysis (2024), OECD Regional Demography (2020). How we calculate this
Weather in Idaho vs Illinois
Monthly averages — select a city to compare.
Avg. annual high / low
Avg. annual high / low
| Months | Chicago | Idaho Falls |
|---|---|---|
| Jan–Mar | 38°/22°F (3°/-6°C) | 39°/19°F (4°/-7°C) |
| Apr–Jun | 70°/48°F (21°/9°C) | 69°/40°F (20°/5°C) |
| Jul–Sep | 80°/60°F (27°/16°C) | 83°/49°F (29°/9°C) |
| Oct–Dec | 48°/32°F (9°/0°C) | 45°/24°F (7°/-5°C) |
View all months
| Month | Chicago | Idaho Falls |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 31°/17°F (-0.6°/-8.6°C) | 31°/14°F (-0.7°/-10.2°C) |
| Feb | 35°/20°F (1.8°/-6.6°C) | 36°/17°F (2.3°/-8.4°C) |
| Mar | 47°/29°F (8.1°/-1.6°C) | 49°/26°F (9.3°/-3.2°C) |
| Apr | 59°/39°F (15.0°/3.8°C) | 59°/33°F (15.2°/0.3°C) |
| May | 70°/48°F (21.1°/9.1°C) | 69°/40°F (20.3°/4.7°C) |
| Jun | 80°/58°F (26.5°/14.5°C) | 78°/47°F (25.6°/8.6°C) |
| Jul | 84°/64°F (28.9°/17.7°C) | 87°/53°F (30.7°/11.7°C) |
| Aug | 82°/63°F (27.7°/17.2°C) | 87°/51°F (30.6°/10.7°C) |
| Sep | 75°/54°F (23.8°/12.4°C) | 76°/42°F (24.3°/5.8°C) |
| Oct | 62°/43°F (16.8°/6.0°C) | 61°/33°F (16.3°/0.4°C) |
| Nov | 48°/32°F (9.0°/0.2°C) | 44°/24°F (6.4°/-4.7°C) |
| Dec | 35°/21°F (1.6°/-6.3°C) | 31°/15°F (-0.5°/-9.7°C) |
Data:
National Weather Service
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it cheaper to live in Idaho than Illinois?
Yes — Idaho is on average about 6% cheaper than Illinois. City-level variation can be significant.
How much money do I need to move to Idaho?
Plan for at least 3 months of living expenses — roughly $17,575 in Idaho on a $75,000 comparable salary — plus one-off moving costs (movers, a truck rental, and a rental deposit).
Is Idaho safe?
Idaho performs significantly better than Illinois across all safety metrics.
How is healthcare in Idaho compared to Illinois?
Idaho generally does better on health & wellbeing, though Illinois leads in uninsured rate.
What's the weather like in Idaho compared to Illinois?
The average high temperature in Idaho Falls is 59°F, compared to 59°F in Chicago. Idaho Falls receives around 14.3 in of rainfall per year, while Chicago gets 36.9 in.
