Moving to Minnesota from Pennsylvania
What to Expect
A comprehensive look at what changes when you move from Pennsylvania to Minnesota — from daily expenses to quality of life.
If you moved from Pennsylvania to Minnesota, you would find that Minnesota is 6.9% cheaper than Pennsylvania. A $75,000 salary in Pennsylvania would need to be roughly $69,800 in Minnesota to maintain the same lifestyle. Expect a noticeable climate shift — Minneapolis averages 55°F vs 65°F in Philadelphia, making it significantly cooler. Philadelphia and Minneapolis are about 980 mi apart.
Is Minnesota cheaper than Pennsylvania?
The biggest cost differences at a glance
Restaurants
pay 4.1% more
Groceries
pay 3.9% less
Transportation
pay 1.3% less
Housing
pay 12.2% less
Childcare
pay 34.7% less
Entertainment and Sports
pay 4.6% 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 Minnesota?
What does your salary buy?
$75,000 → $69,800
To maintain the same standard of living in Minnesota
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 Minnesota cost about 2% more than cities in Pennsylvania.
Compare cities head-to-head
Key Indicator Comparison
How Pennsylvania and Minnesota 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
Pennsylvania generally does better on safety, though Minnesota leads in violent 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
Minnesota performs significantly better than Pennsylvania across all health & wellbeing metrics.
What about housing?
typical price of a home
typical monthly gross rent
share of homes that are owner-occupied
Pennsylvania generally does better on what about housing?, though Minnesota leads in homeownership rate.
Will I have good infrastructure?
share of households with internet
minutes each way to work
Minnesota performs significantly better than Pennsylvania 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
Minnesota generally does better on employment & economy, though Pennsylvania leads in unemployment rate.
Is it good for families?
average years of life at birth
share of adults with a 4-year college degree
Minnesota performs significantly better than Pennsylvania 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 Minnesota vs Pennsylvania
Monthly averages — select a city to compare.
Avg. annual high / low
Avg. annual high / low
| Months | Philadelphia | Minneapolis |
|---|---|---|
| Jan–Mar | 46°/29°F (8°/-2°C) | 31°/15°F (0°/-10°C) |
| Apr–Jun | 74°/54°F (23°/12°C) | 69°/48°F (20°/9°C) |
| Jul–Sep | 83°/66°F (29°/19°C) | 78°/59°F (26°/15°C) |
| Oct–Dec | 56°/39°F (13°/4°C) | 42°/26°F (6°/-3°C) |
View all months
| Month | Philadelphia | Minneapolis |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 40°/26°F (4.6°/-3.6°C) | 24°/8°F (-4.6°/-13.6°C) |
| Feb | 44°/28°F (6.6°/-2.4°C) | 29°/13°F (-1.7°/-10.7°C) |
| Mar | 53°/34°F (11.5°/1.3°C) | 41°/24°F (5.2°/-4.3°C) |
| Apr | 64°/44°F (17.7°/6.7°C) | 58°/37°F (14.3°/2.9°C) |
| May | 74°/54°F (23.2°/12.2°C) | 69°/49°F (20.8°/9.4°C) |
| Jun | 83°/64°F (28.2°/17.7°C) | 79°/59°F (26.0°/14.9°C) |
| Jul | 87°/69°F (30.6°/20.7°C) | 83°/64°F (28.6°/17.8°C) |
| Aug | 85°/68°F (29.6°/19.9°C) | 80°/62°F (26.9°/16.6°C) |
| Sep | 78°/60°F (25.6°/15.7°C) | 72°/52°F (22.1°/11.3°C) |
| Oct | 67°/48°F (19.2°/9.1°C) | 58°/40°F (14.4°/4.3°C) |
| Nov | 56°/39°F (13.3°/4.0°C) | 41°/26°F (5.1°/-3.2°C) |
| Dec | 45°/30°F (7.1°/-1.1°C) | 27°/12°F (-2.7°/-10.9°C) |
Data:
National Weather Service
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it cheaper to live in Minnesota than Pennsylvania?
Generally yes: Minnesota runs about 7% cheaper than Pennsylvania on average, though it depends heavily on the city.
How much money do I need to move to Minnesota?
A safe rule of thumb is 3 months of local expenses plus relocation costs. On a $75,000 comparable salary, that's around $17,450 in Minnesota for everyday spending, before movers, a truck rental, and a rental deposit.
Is Minnesota safe?
Pennsylvania generally does better on safety, though Minnesota leads in violent crime rate.
How is healthcare in Minnesota compared to Pennsylvania?
Minnesota performs significantly better than Pennsylvania across all health & wellbeing metrics.
What's the weather like in Minnesota compared to Pennsylvania?
The average high temperature in Minneapolis is 55°F, compared to 65°F in Philadelphia. Minneapolis receives around 30.6 in of rainfall per year, while Philadelphia gets 41.5 in.
