Moving to Idaho from Missouri
What to Expect
A comprehensive look at what changes when you move from Missouri to Idaho — from daily expenses to quality of life.
If you moved from Missouri to Idaho, you would find that Idaho is 1.5% cheaper than Missouri. A $75,000 salary in Missouri would need to be roughly $73,900 in Idaho to maintain the same lifestyle. Kansas City and Idaho Falls are about 950 mi apart.
Is Idaho cheaper than Missouri?
The biggest cost differences at a glance
Restaurants
pay 10.3% less
Groceries
pay 9.0% less
Transportation
pay 18.5% less
Housing
pay 11.3% more
Childcare
pay 9.7% more
Entertainment and Sports
pay 13.2% 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.
What salary do you need in Idaho?
What does your salary buy?
$75,000 → $73,900
To maintain the same standard of living in Idaho
Calculate with your salary →Key Indicator Comparison
How Missouri and Idaho 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
Idaho performs significantly better than Missouri 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 performs significantly better than Missouri across all health & wellbeing metrics.
What about housing?
typical price of a home
typical monthly gross rent
share of homes that are owner-occupied
Missouri generally does better on what about housing?, though Idaho leads in homeownership rate.
Will I have good infrastructure?
share of households with internet
minutes each way to work
Idaho performs significantly better than Missouri 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
Missouri generally does better on employment & economy, though Idaho leads in median household income.
Is it good for families?
average years of life at birth
share of adults with a 4-year college degree
Missouri 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 Missouri
Monthly averages — select a city to compare.
Avg. annual high / low
Avg. annual high / low
| Months | Kansas City | Idaho Falls |
|---|---|---|
| Jan–Mar | 47°/28°F (8°/-2°C) | 39°/19°F (4°/-7°C) |
| Apr–Jun | 76°/57°F (24°/14°C) | 69°/40°F (20°/5°C) |
| Jul–Sep | 86°/67°F (30°/20°C) | 83°/49°F (29°/9°C) |
| Oct–Dec | 55°/37°F (13°/3°C) | 45°/24°F (7°/-5°C) |
View all months
| Month | Kansas City | Idaho Falls |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 40°/22°F (4.2°/-5.3°C) | 31°/14°F (-0.7°/-10.2°C) |
| Feb | 45°/26°F (7.0°/-3.2°C) | 36°/17°F (2.3°/-8.4°C) |
| Mar | 56°/36°F (13.4°/2.1°C) | 49°/26°F (9.3°/-3.2°C) |
| Apr | 67°/47°F (19.3°/8.1°C) | 59°/33°F (15.2°/0.3°C) |
| May | 76°/57°F (24.4°/13.9°C) | 69°/40°F (20.3°/4.7°C) |
| Jun | 85°/67°F (29.4°/19.3°C) | 78°/47°F (25.6°/8.6°C) |
| Jul | 90°/72°F (32.3°/22.2°C) | 87°/53°F (30.7°/11.7°C) |
| Aug | 89°/70°F (31.4°/21.2°C) | 87°/51°F (30.6°/10.7°C) |
| Sep | 80°/60°F (26.7°/15.8°C) | 76°/42°F (24.3°/5.8°C) |
| Oct | 68°/49°F (19.9°/9.4°C) | 61°/33°F (16.3°/0.4°C) |
| Nov | 54°/37°F (12.3°/2.6°C) | 44°/24°F (6.4°/-4.7°C) |
| Dec | 42°/26°F (5.4°/-3.6°C) | 31°/15°F (-0.5°/-9.7°C) |
Data:
National Weather Service
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it cheaper to live in Idaho than Missouri?
Headline costs are within a few percent between Idaho and Missouri; rent and dining are where you'll actually feel differences.
How much money do I need to move to Idaho?
A safe rule of thumb is 3 months of local expenses plus relocation costs. On a $75,000 comparable salary, that's around $18,475 in Idaho for everyday spending, before movers, a truck rental, and a rental deposit.
Is Idaho safe?
Idaho performs significantly better than Missouri across all safety metrics.
How is healthcare in Idaho compared to Missouri?
Idaho performs significantly better than Missouri across all health & wellbeing metrics.
What's the weather like in Idaho compared to Missouri?
The average high temperature in Idaho Falls is 59°F, compared to 66°F in Kansas City. Idaho Falls receives around 14.3 in of rainfall per year, while Kansas City gets 39.1 in.
