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Everyone wants a home that mixes affordability with comfort and Kansas does this very well. Families love the Sunflower State's beaches, midlands, and mountains as tourists before moving here and calling it home.
But before you decide to relocate, you have to do some research into the exact cost of living around the state -- and that's how we're going to help you.
These are the places in Kansas that cost a pretty penny -- the most expensive cities in the state.
After we saved up for months and could finally afford it, we landed on this list of the ten most expensive cities in Kansas for 2023.
So where is the most expensive place to live in Kansas? That would be Manhattan.
the 2017-2021 American Community Survey for the 62 places in Kansas with more than 5,000 people.
Here are the 10 most expensive places to live in Kansas for 2023:
What's the most expensive place to live in Kansas? Well, HomeSnacks crunched the numbers and discovered that Manhattan is the most expensive place to live in Kansas.
So hopefully Chanute (the cheapest place to live in Kansas) can show these guys how to live on a budget in the coming years. Read on for how these places had costs rise faster than inflation.
And if you already knew these places were expensive, check out some more reading about Kansas and the most expensive cities in the country:
The 10 Most Expensive Places To Live In Kansas For 2023
1. Manhattan
/10
Population: 54,794
Rank Last Year: 1 (No Change)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 4.2x (most expensive)
Income To Rent Ratio: 56.6x (5th most expensive)
More on Manhattan: Real Estate | Data | Photos
The median income in Manhattan comes in at $52,747 and the median home value is $222,300 for 2023.
2. Prairie Village
/10
Population: 22,812
Rank Last Year: 2 (No Change)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 3.6x (4th most expensive)
Income To Rent Ratio: 62.9x (15th most expensive)
More on Prairie Village: Real Estate | Data | Photos
The median income in Prairie Village comes in at $92,753 and the median home value is $333,300 for 2023.
3. Lawrence
/10
Population: 94,745
Rank Last Year: 3 (No Change)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 3.8x (2nd most expensive)
Income To Rent Ratio: 57.3x (7th most expensive)
More on Lawrence: Real Estate | Data | Photos
The median income in Lawrence comes in at $56,536 and the median home value is $216,700 for 2023.
4. Maize
/10
Population: 5,469
Rank Last Year: 11 (Up 7)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 3.4x (6th most expensive)
Income To Rent Ratio: 57.0x (6th most expensive)
More on Maize: Real Estate | Data
The median income in Maize comes in at $54,870 and the median home value is $184,100 for 2023.
5. Roeland Park
/10
Population: 6,871
Rank Last Year: 7 (Up 2)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 2.9x (12th most expensive)
Income To Rent Ratio: 62.8x (13th most expensive)
More on Roeland Park: Real Estate | Data
The median income in Roeland Park comes in at $73,984 and the median home value is $211,900 for 2023.
6. Merriam
/10
Population: 11,110
Rank Last Year: 5 (Down 1)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 3.0x (10th most expensive)
Income To Rent Ratio: 64.0x (17th most expensive)
More on Merriam: Real Estate | Data | Photos
The median income in Merriam comes in at $64,703 and the median home value is $196,100 for 2023.
7. Mission
/10
Population: 9,884
Rank Last Year: 4 (Down 3)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 3.3x (7th most expensive)
Income To Rent Ratio: 65.9x (26th most expensive)
More on Mission: Real Estate | Data
The median income in Mission comes in at $68,859 and the median home value is $225,200 for 2023.
8. Hays
/10
Population: 20,870
Rank Last Year: 13 (Up 5)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 3.6x (3rd most expensive)
Income To Rent Ratio: 65.6x (23rd most expensive)
More on Hays: Real Estate | Data | Photos
The median income in Hays comes in at $50,941 and the median home value is $185,700 for 2023.
9. Overland Park
/10
Population: 195,249
Rank Last Year: 6 (Down 3)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 3.4x (5th most expensive)
Income To Rent Ratio: 74.3x (46th most expensive)
More on Overland Park: Real Estate | Data | Photos
The median income in Overland Park comes in at $92,769 and the median home value is $314,500 for 2023.
10. Lenexa
/10
Population: 56,755
Rank Last Year: 12 (Up 2)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 3.1x (9th most expensive)
Income To Rent Ratio: 75.5x (49th most expensive)
More on Lenexa: Real Estate | Data | Photos
The median income in Lenexa comes in at $96,477 and the median home value is $299,400 for 2023.
Methodology: How We Determined The Most Expensive Places To Live In The Sunflower State For 2023
The two most important things to think about when it comes to being able to afford if you can live comes down to:
- How much do money do I make?
- How much do I have spend to live there?
You need to understand your costs in the context of how much money you make.
For example, if the median household earns $100,000 and spends $40,000 on housing it's actually cheaper to live there than a place with a median income of $50,000 and housing costs of $21,000. You might spend more on housing, but you have more money overall to play with.
With that example in mind, we derived several statistics from the latest Census American Community Survey 2017-2021 around incomes and costs. They are:
- Median Home Price / Median Income (lower is better)
- Median Income / Median Rent (Higher is better)
- Median Home Price
We added simply median home price because high home prices generally correlate with higher expenses for all costs related to homes (heating, electricity, etc).
You can then compare these metrics in each of the places in Kansas to figure out which is the most expensive.
What you are left with is a "Cost of Living Index" by taking the average rank of each of these metrics for each city.
So we used that cost of living index in order to rank all of the 62 places in Kansas that have more than 5,000 people.
The place with the highest cost of living in Kansas according to the data is Manhattan. You can download the data here.
Summary: Taking A Chunk Out Of Your Paycheck In Kansas For 2023
Well there you have it, the places in Kansas that have the highest cost of living, with Manhattan ranking as the most expensive city in the Sunflower State.
Here's a look at the most affordable cities in Kansas according to the data:
- Chanute
- Pratt
- Arkansas City
For more Kansas reading, check out:
- Best Places To Live In Kansas
- Cheapest Places To Live In Kansas
- Most Dangerous Places In Kansas
- Safest Places In Kansas
- Worst Places To Live In Kansas
Detailed List Of The Most Expensive Cities In Kansas
| Rank | City | ExpensiveScore |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Manhattan | 6.0 |
| 2 | Prairie Village | 7.0 |
| 3 | Lawrence | 7.33 |
| 4 | Maize | 10.67 |
| 5 | Roeland Park | 13.33 |
| 6 | Merriam | 14.33 |
| 7 | Mission | 14.67 |
| 8 | Hays | 15.0 |
| 9 | Overland Park | 18.0 |
| 10 | Lenexa | 20.67 |
| 11 | Leawood | 21.67 |
| 12 | Junction City | 22.0 |
| 13 | Augusta | 24.0 |
| 14 | Garden City | 24.67 |
| 15 | Salina | 25.0 |
| 16 | Gardner | 25.0 |
| 17 | Wichita | 25.33 |
| 18 | De Soto | 26.0 |
| 19 | Kansas City | 26.33 |
| 20 | Shawnee | 26.67 |
| 21 | Spring Hill | 26.67 |
| 22 | Olathe | 27.0 |
| 23 | Basehor | 27.0 |
| 24 | Tonganoxie | 27.67 |
| 25 | Pittsburg | 27.67 |
| 26 | Andover | 27.67 |
| 27 | Leavenworth | 27.67 |
| 28 | Mcpherson | 28.33 |
| 29 | Bonner Springs | 29.33 |
| 30 | Paola | 30.33 |
| 31 | Topeka | 30.83 |
| 32 | Derby | 31.33 |
| 33 | Liberal | 32.33 |
| 34 | Valley Center | 32.33 |
| 35 | Ottawa | 33.0 |
| 36 | Emporia | 33.5 |
| 37 | Bel Aire | 35.0 |
| 38 | El Dorado | 35.67 |
| 39 | Hutchinson | 37.33 |
| 40 | Iola | 37.33 |
| 41 | Haysville | 37.67 |
| 42 | Fort Scott | 39.0 |
| 43 | Eudora | 39.0 |
| 44 | Park City | 39.0 |
| 45 | Lansing | 39.33 |
| 46 | Mulvane | 41.0 |
| 47 | Ulysses | 42.0 |
| 48 | Abilene | 42.67 |
| 49 | Winfield | 42.83 |
| 50 | Independence | 43.0 |
| 51 | Great Bend | 43.0 |
| 52 | Dodge City | 43.17 |
| 53 | Colby | 43.67 |
| 54 | Coffeyville | 44.0 |
| 55 | Atchison | 44.33 |
| 56 | Wellington | 44.33 |
| 57 | Parsons | 45.0 |
| 58 | Newton | 45.33 |
| 59 | Concordia | 48.0 |
| 60 | Arkansas City | 48.67 |
| 61 | Pratt | 51.0 |
| 62 | Chanute | 55.33 |
