Moving to Indiana from Illinois
What to Expect
Everything you need to know before relocating from Illinois to Indiana — costs, safety, healthcare, and practical first steps.
If you moved from Illinois to Indiana, you would find that Indiana is 11.1% cheaper than Illinois. A $75,000 salary in Illinois would need to be roughly $66,700 in Indiana to maintain the same lifestyle. Chicago and Indianapolis are about 160 mi apart.
Is Indiana cheaper than Illinois?
Where you'll feel the difference day-to-day
Restaurants
pay 5.7% less
Groceries
pay 8.3% less
Transportation
pay 15.7% less
Housing
pay 10.3% less
Childcare
pay 16.5% less
Entertainment and Sports
pay 16.9% 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 Indiana?
What does your salary buy?
$75,000 → $66,700
To maintain the same standard of living in Indiana
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 Indiana cost about 6% less than cities in Illinois.
Compare cities head-to-head
Key Indicator Comparison
Key indicators for anyone considering a move from Illinois to Indiana.
Is it safe?
incidents per 100,000 people per year
incidents per 100,000 people per year
Illinois generally does better on safety, though Indiana leads in property crime rate.
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
Illinois performs better than Indiana across all health & wellbeing metrics.
What about housing?
typical price of a home
typical monthly gross rent
share of homes that are owner-occupied
Indiana performs significantly better than Illinois across all what about housing? metrics.
Will I have good infrastructure?
share of households with internet
minutes each way to work
Illinois generally does better on infrastructure, though Indiana leads in average commute.
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 Indiana 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 performs better than Indiana across all family life metrics.
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 Indiana vs Illinois
Monthly averages — select a city to compare.
Avg. annual high / low
Avg. annual high / low
| Months | Chicago | Indianapolis |
|---|---|---|
| Jan–Mar | 38°/22°F (3°/-6°C) | 42°/26°F (6°/-3°C) |
| Apr–Jun | 70°/48°F (21°/9°C) | 72°/53°F (22°/12°C) |
| Jul–Sep | 80°/60°F (27°/16°C) | 81°/63°F (27°/17°C) |
| Oct–Dec | 48°/32°F (9°/0°C) | 51°/35°F (11°/2°C) |
View all months
| Month | Chicago | Indianapolis |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 31°/17°F (-0.6°/-8.6°C) | 35°/21°F (1.7°/-6.1°C) |
| Feb | 35°/20°F (1.8°/-6.6°C) | 40°/24°F (4.4°/-4.4°C) |
| Mar | 47°/29°F (8.1°/-1.6°C) | 51°/33°F (10.8°/0.8°C) |
| Apr | 59°/39°F (15.0°/3.8°C) | 63°/44°F (17.1°/6.4°C) |
| May | 70°/48°F (21.1°/9.1°C) | 72°/53°F (22.5°/11.7°C) |
| Jun | 80°/58°F (26.5°/14.5°C) | 81°/63°F (27.4°/17.4°C) |
| Jul | 84°/64°F (28.9°/17.7°C) | 84°/67°F (28.8°/19.2°C) |
| Aug | 82°/63°F (27.7°/17.2°C) | 83°/65°F (28.4°/18.3°C) |
| Sep | 75°/54°F (23.8°/12.4°C) | 77°/57°F (25.1°/13.9°C) |
| Oct | 62°/43°F (16.8°/6.0°C) | 64°/45°F (18.0°/7.3°C) |
| Nov | 48°/32°F (9.0°/0.2°C) | 52°/36°F (11.0°/2.3°C) |
| Dec | 35°/21°F (1.6°/-6.3°C) | 38°/25°F (3.6°/-3.9°C) |
Data:
National Weather Service
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it cheaper to live in Indiana than Illinois?
Yes — Indiana is on average about 11% cheaper than Illinois. City-level variation can be significant.
How much money do I need to move to Indiana?
Plan for at least 3 months of living expenses — roughly $16,675 in Indiana on a $75,000 comparable salary — plus one-off moving costs (movers, a truck rental, and a rental deposit).
Is Indiana safe?
Illinois generally does better on safety, though Indiana leads in property crime rate.
How is healthcare in Indiana compared to Illinois?
Illinois performs better than Indiana across all health & wellbeing metrics.
What's the weather like in Indiana compared to Illinois?
The average high temperature in Indianapolis is 62°F, compared to 59°F in Chicago. Indianapolis receives around 40.8 in of rainfall per year, while Chicago gets 36.9 in.
