Cost comparison
Compare rent, housing, utilities, groceries, salary needs, and move score across the city profiles currently available in LifeAtlas.
Iowa
Marshalltown is a supplemental starter city profile for the central Iowa affordability market in Iowa, useful for route coverage and starter comparisons around rent, housing, utilities, wages, benefits, insurance, and moving costs.
Iowa
Cedar Rapids is the regional jobs and family market in Iowa, promoted in source-ready batch 03 for comparisons around housing, wages, utilities, taxes, benefits, and moving costs.
Comparison
Marshalltown has the lower salary-needed estimate, while Cedar Rapids has the lower starter rent. Differences are shown as Cedar Rapids minus Marshalltown.
| Metric | Marshalltown | Cedar Rapids | Difference | Advantage | Why |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $1,068 | $1,050 | -$18 | Cedar Rapids | Cedar Rapids has the lower median rent. |
| Home price | $174,609 | $230,000 | +$55,391 | Marshalltown | Marshalltown has the lower home price. |
| Utilities | $193/mo | $168/mo | -$25/mo | Cedar Rapids | Cedar Rapids has the lower utilities. |
| Groceries index | 102 | 95 | -7 | Cedar Rapids | Cedar Rapids has the lower groceries index. |
| Salary needed | $39,335 | $52,000 | +$12,665 | Marshalltown | Marshalltown has the lower salary needed. |
| Move score | 85/100 | 80/100 | -5 | Marshalltown | Marshalltown has the higher move score. |