Arkansas
Moderate tax burden · COL index 85
Wins 7 categories
Illinois
High tax burden · COL index 92
Wins 6 categories
Illinois's top income tax rate is 4.95% vs Arkansas's 3.9%. Property taxes are meaningfully different: Illinois averages 1.73% annually vs Arkansas's 0.6%. The median home in Illinois costs $275K vs $195K in Arkansas. Politically, Arkansas voted Republican in 2024 (R+28.0) while Illinois went Democratic (D+14.0).
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Category wins
7
Arkansas
6
Illinois
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Illinois was ranked near the top for both quality of life and safety. However, the state's economy was nearly the worst in the country. The analysis also included rankings for individual categories like homeownership rates and housing costs.
What are the pros and cons of living in Arkansas?
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