California vs Illinois
Twenty measures that tend to decide a move, side by side. Every figure is the same one the map shows, from the same source.
California comes out ahead on 3 of them and Illinois on 12, but that tally is not a recommendation: it weighs a difference in class size the same as a difference in house price. Read the rows that matter to you.
MeasureCaliforniaIllinois
Home price$775,549$298,871
Rent paid$2,042$1,292
Cost of living142.394.7
Income$100,149$83,211
Property tax0.70%1.88%
Income tax13.30%4.95%
Sales tax9.03%8.98%
Electric bill$161$134
Temperature62.7°F52°F
Snowfall4.3 in25.4 in
Precipitation18.4 in30.8 in
Sunshine5.20 kWh/m²3.93 kWh/m²
Students per teacher21.913.8
Bachelor's or higher38.1%39.2%
Crime rate486289
Commute29.7 min28.3 min
Unemployment5.2%5.1%
Population change-0.5%-0.8%
Wildfire risk96.837.3
Flood risk98.590.0
Bold marks the better figure where a measure has a better direction. Weather, snowfall and rainfall are shown plain, because warmer is not better — it is a preference.