Moving to Illinois from Mississippi
What to Expect
A comprehensive look at what changes when you move from Mississippi to Illinois — from daily expenses to quality of life.
If you moved from Mississippi to Illinois, you would find that Illinois is 26.8% more expensive than Mississippi. A $75,000 salary in Mississippi would need to be roughly $86,506 in Illinois to maintain the same lifestyle. Expect a noticeable climate shift — Springfield averages 63°F vs 76°F in Jackson, making it significantly cooler.
How Far Will Your Money Go?
How your spending power changes when you relocate from Mississippi to Illinois.
What does your salary buy?
$75,000 → $86,506
To maintain the same standard of living in Illinois
Calculate with your salary →The biggest cost differences at a glance
Restaurants
pay 16.3% more
Groceries
pay 10.4% more
Transportation
pay 24.8% more
Housing
pay 16.2% more
Childcare
pay 72.2% more
Entertainment and Sports
pay 30.7% more
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 Mississippi and Illinois stack up on safety, healthcare, jobs, and infrastructure.
Is it safe?
incidents per 100,000 people per year
incidents per 100,000 people per year
Mississippi performs 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
Illinois performs significantly better than Mississippi across all health & wellbeing metrics.
What about housing?
typical price of a home
typical monthly gross rent
share of homes that are owner-occupied
Mississippi performs better than Illinois across all what about housing? metrics.
Will I have good infrastructure?
share of households with internet
minutes each way to work
Mississippi generally does better on infrastructure, though Illinois leads in internet access.
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 Mississippi 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 significantly 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.
Avg. annual high / low
Avg. annual high / low
| Months | Jackson | Springfield |
|---|---|---|
| Jan–Mar | 62°/41°F (17°/5°C) | 42°/25°F (6°/-4°C) |
| Apr–Jun | 83°/62°F (28°/17°C) | 74°/52°F (23°/11°C) |
| Jul–Sep | 90°/70°F (32°/21°C) | 83°/61°F (29°/16°C) |
| Oct–Dec | 67°/46°F (20°/8°C) | 52°/33°F (11°/1°C) |
View all months
| Month | Jackson | Springfield |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 56°/37°F (13.6°/2.7°C) | 35°/19°F (1.6°/-7.4°C) |
| Feb | 61°/40°F (16.1°/4.6°C) | 40°/23°F (4.4°/-5.2°C) |
| Mar | 68°/47°F (20.2°/8.2°C) | 52°/32°F (11.2°/0.1°C) |
| Apr | 76°/54°F (24.4°/12.1°C) | 65°/42°F (18.1°/5.8°C) |
| May | 83°/63°F (28.3°/17.1°C) | 75°/53°F (23.8°/11.4°C) |
| Jun | 89°/69°F (31.8°/20.8°C) | 83°/62°F (28.4°/16.6°C) |
| Jul | 92°/72°F (33.1°/22.4°C) | 86°/65°F (30.1°/18.6°C) |
| Aug | 92°/72°F (33.1°/22.2°C) | 85°/64°F (29.4°/17.6°C) |
| Sep | 87°/66°F (30.3°/18.9°C) | 79°/55°F (26.1°/12.6°C) |
| Oct | 77°/55°F (25.1°/12.8°C) | 66°/44°F (19.1°/6.6°C) |
| Nov | 67°/45°F (19.7°/7.3°C) | 52°/34°F (11.3°/1.1°C) |
| Dec | 58°/39°F (14.7°/3.9°C) | 38°/22°F (3.5°/-5.3°C) |
Data:
National Weather Service
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it cheaper to live in Illinois than Mississippi?
Day-to-day costs in Illinois run about 15% higher than Mississippi on average; specific cities can swing further.
How much money do I need to move to Illinois?
A safe rule of thumb is 3 months of local expenses plus relocation costs. On a $75,000 comparable salary, that's around $21,626 in Illinois for everyday spending, before movers, a truck rental, and a rental deposit.
Is Illinois safe?
Mississippi performs better than Illinois across all safety metrics.
How is healthcare in Illinois compared to Mississippi?
Illinois performs significantly better than Mississippi across all health & wellbeing metrics.
What's the weather like in Illinois compared to Mississippi?
The average high temperature in Springfield is 63°F, compared to 76°F in Jackson. Springfield receives around 37.4 in of rainfall per year, while Jackson gets 54.3 in.
