USLivingCost Salaries · Rent · Cost of Living

Huntsville, AL vs. St. Louis, MO

Median rent is $1,078 a month in Huntsville, AL and $978 in St. Louis, MO. Household income is $70,778 against $55,279. Both cities are read from the same ACS 2019-2023 5-Year Estimates and the same BEA Regional Price Parities 2023, so the two columns below are directly comparable.

$
Same standard of living
A salary of $100,000 in Huntsville, AL buys what $102,029 buys in St. Louis, MO
+$2,029 more to keep the same standard of living
Median gross rent Monthly
$1,078 $978 -9.3%
Median household income Annual
$70,778 $55,279 -21.9%
Median home value Owner-occupied
$263,100 $185,100 -29.6%
Rent as share of income Annual rent ÷ income
18.3% 21.2% 2.9 pp
Price level U.S. average = 100
94.4 96.3 +2.0%
Salary needed for median rent Keeps rent at 30% of gross
$43,100 $39,100 -9.3%
Rent median income carries at 30% Affordable rent
$1,769 $1,382 -21.9%
Population City proper
218,814 293,109 +34.0%
Equivalent salary For $100,000 in Huntsville
$100,000 $102,029 +2.0%

A green or red badge means the second city is higher or lower, not better or worse: a lower rent is good for a tenant, a lower household income is not. For the price level and
the share of income the raw values are shown, because a percentage difference between two
percentages is easy to misread.

What the gap means

Lower rent
$978
St. Louis, MO · 10.2% below Huntsville, AL
Higher household income
$70,778
Huntsville, AL · 28.0% above St. Louis, MO
Same standard of living
$102,029
$100,000 in Huntsville, AL needs $102,029 in St. Louis, MO
Price level gap
1.9 points
94.4 in AL against 96.3 in MO
Rent burden gap
2.9 points
St. Louis, MO versus Huntsville, AL, share of income taken by rent
Highest buying power
105.9%
Huntsville, AL · share of the national average income that a dollar there buys

Occupation wages in both metros

May 2025 U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS). Metropolitan areas may differ from city boundaries.

Occupation Huntsville, AL median St. Louis, MO median vs.
General and Operations Managers $136,340 $93,140 -31.7%
Registered Nurses $77,090 $83,180 +7.9%
Retail Salespersons $33,120 $33,820 +2.1%
Customer Service Representatives $38,400 $45,800 +19.3%
Fast Food and Counter Workers $27,180 $31,260 +15.0%
Waiters and Waitresses $27,990 $31,200 +11.5%
Janitors and Cleaners, Except Maids and Housekeeping Cleaners $33,600 $36,620 +9.0%
Heavy and Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers $56,690 $58,240 +2.7%

Metropolitan areas and cover every industry together, so the two columns may describe wider areas than the city limits used for rent and income.

More comparisons with Huntsville, AL

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Definitions used on this page

Salary needed for the median rent
Twelve months of median gross rent divided by 0.30: the income that keeps the median rent at 30% of gross pay.
Price level
BEA regional price parity for the metro area where one is published, otherwise for the state. The national average is 100.
Same standard of living
A salary in Huntsville, AL converted into St. Louis, MO at the ratio of the two price levels. It adjusts for prices only, not for taxes or for what either city offers.
Buying power
One hundred divided by the price level: what a dollar buys locally relative to the national average.

Sources

Margins of error are published for every Census figure. Read the methodology before reading a small gap between two cities as a real difference.

Full detail for each city: Huntsville, AL · St. Louis, MO