Home/Compare Cities/Salt Lake City vs Las Vegas

Salt Lake City vs Las Vegas

Salt Lake City, UT  ·  Las Vegas, NV

TL;DR

Salt Lake City cost-of-living index is 111 vs 103 for Las Vegas (US = 100). Median home: $485,000 vs $415,000. Median rent: $1,149/mo vs $1,068/mo.

Source: Zillow ZHVI/ZORI · Census ACS, 2026-04-19

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Las Vegas is 7% cheaper than Salt Lake City overall.

Written by Jere Salmisto, Founder & Quantitative Systems Builder, CalcFi·Reviewed by CalcFi Editorial·Last reviewed 2026-04-19

Home Price

Salt: $485,000

Las: $415,000

Monthly Rent

Salt: $1,149/mo

Las: $1,068/mo

COL Index

Salt: 111

Las: 103

Median Income

Salt: $77,200

Las: $62,600

Side-by-Side Comparison

Metric
Salt Lake City
Las Vegas
Winner
🏠

Median Home Price

$485,000
$415,000
Las Vegas
🏢

Monthly Rent (Median)

$1,149/mo
$1,068/mo
Las Vegas
💰

Median Household Income

$77,200
$62,600
Salt Lake City
📋

Property Tax Rate

0.53%
0.6%
Salt Lake City
📊

Cost of Living Index

100 = national average

111
103
Las Vegas
🚗

Avg. Commute

23 min
25 min
Salt Lake City
📈

Unemployment Rate

2.8%
5%
Salt Lake City
👥

Median Age

32.2 yrs
37.7 yrs
Las Vegas

What This Means For You

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Buying Power

A $100,000 salary in Salt Lake City has the same purchasing power as $92,793 in Las Vegas — based on each city's cost of living index.

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Housing

Homes in Las Vegas cost 14% more (-$70,000 extra). Expect a larger mortgage and down payment.

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Renting

Renting in Las Vegas saves you $81/month — $972 per year. Median rent: $1,149/mo in Salt Lake City vs $1,068/mo in Las Vegas.

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Property Taxes

On a median-priced home, Salt Lake City owners pay roughly $2,571/year in property taxes vs $2,490/year in Las Vegas. That's a $81 annual difference.

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Local Earnings

Median household income is $77,200 in Salt Lake City and $62,600 in Las Vegas. Las Vegas residents earn 19% more — but remember to factor in cost of living.

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Daily Commute

Average commute is 23 minutes in Salt Lake City vs 25 minutes in Las Vegas. Commute times are nearly identical.

Salary Equivalence

To maintain the same lifestyle when moving from Salt Lake City to Las Vegas, here's the salary you'd need:

Salary in Salt Lake CityEquivalent in Las VegasDifference
$50,000$46,396-$3,604
$75,000$69,595-$5,405
$100,000$92,793-$7,207
$150,000$139,189-$10,811
$200,000$185,586-$14,414

* Calculated using cost of living indices (national average = 100). Does not account for state income tax differences.

Run the Numbers

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Mortgage Calculator

See monthly payments for homes in either city

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Rent vs Buy

Is it cheaper to rent or buy in these markets?

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Cost of Living

Full cost of living comparison tool

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Home Appreciation

Project future home value growth

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Affordability Calculator

How much home can you afford?

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Property Tax Calculator

Estimate taxes in Salt Lake City or Las Vegas

Salt Lake City Calculators

→ Mortgage calculator for Salt Lake City→ Rent vs buy in Salt Lake City

Las Vegas Calculators

→ Mortgage calculator for Las Vegas→ Rent vs buy in Las Vegas

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Salt Lake City vs Las Vegas: Common Questions

Is Salt Lake City or Las Vegas cheaper to live in?

Based on cost of living indices, Las Vegas is cheaper overall. Salt Lake City has a COL index of 111 while Las Vegas scores 103 (national average = 100).

How do home prices compare between Salt Lake City and Las Vegas?

The median home price in Salt Lake City is $485,000 vs $415,000 in Las Vegas — a difference of $70,000 (14%).

What salary do I need in Las Vegas to match my Salt Lake City income?

Use the salary equivalence table above. For example, a $100K salary in Salt Lake City is equivalent to $92,793 in Las Vegas in terms of purchasing power.

Which city has lower property taxes?

Salt Lake City has a lower property tax rate (0.53% vs 0.6%). On a median-priced home, that means paying $2,490/year vs $2,571/year.

How does rent compare in Salt Lake City vs Las Vegas?

Median monthly rent: $1,149 in Salt Lake City vs $1,068 in Las Vegas. Annualized: $13,788 vs $12,816.

What is the median household income in each city?

Salt Lake City: $77,200/yr. Las Vegas: $62,600/yr (Census ACS).

Which city is better for remote workers?

Lower-cost Las Vegas typically lets remote-workers keeping a coastal salary stretch further. Higher-cost cities usually win on amenities and labor-market depth.

Where does the data on this comparison come from?

Numbers are pulled from Zillow ZHVI/ZORI (home values, rent), the U.S. Census Bureau ACS (income), and BEA RPP (cost-of-living index). Each value is timestamped on the page.

How often is this comparison updated?

Source feeds refresh on their native cadence — hourly for mortgage rates, monthly for ZHVI/ZORI, annually for ACS. Page caches revalidate every 24 hours via Next.js ISR.

Does this comparison replace tax or financial advice?

No. This page is educational reference using public data and standard formulas. It is not personalized tax, legal, or investment advice. Consult a licensed professional for material decisions.

Sources & Citations

  1. Zillow Research — Zillow Home Value Index (ZHVI) and Observed Rent Index (ZORI) — zillow.com/research/data
  2. U.S. Census Bureau — American Community Survey (ACS) 5-year estimates for median household income, median age, commute time — census.gov/acs
  3. Bureau of Economic Analysis — Regional Price Parities (RPP) by state and metro — bea.gov/rpp
  4. Tax Foundation — effective property tax rates and state tax rates — taxfoundation.org
  5. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics — unemployment rates and regional CPI — bls.gov
  6. Council for Community and Economic Research (C2ER) — Cost of Living Index — coli.org
Methodology & Assumptions

City-level metrics (median home price, median rent, median household income, property tax rate, COL index, commute, unemployment, median age) are sourced from Zillow ZHVI/ZORI[1], Census ACS 5-year estimates[2], BEA Regional Price Parities[3], Tax Foundation[4], and BLS Local Area Unemployment Statistics[5].

The Cost of Living Index uses 100 = national average (C2ER methodology[6]): values above 100 indicate a city is more expensive than the national average, below 100 less expensive.

Salary equivalence uses the ratio adjustedSalary = salary × (colDestination / colOrigin). This accounts for cost-of-living differences but does not model state income tax variation, which can be significant.

Annual property tax is computed as medianHomePrice × propertyTaxRate. Actual assessed value may differ from sale price. Effective rates vary within a metro; these are metro-wide medians.

Commute-hours calculations assume 250 working days/year and a round-trip commute. "Tied" in the comparison table means values within ±1% of each other.

Last reviewed reflects the maximum retrievedAt timestamp across every sourced dataset feeding this page. When any source refreshes, the next ISR revalidation (every 24 hours) picks the new date.

Cost of living data sourced from [6] C2ER, [2] U.S. Census Bureau, and [1] Zillow Research. Tax rates from [4] Tax Foundation. Last reviewed 2026-04-19.