State comparison
Kansas vs Kentucky: which state is better to live in?
Kentucky costs a median household about $3,100 a year less in state and local taxes than Kansas, mostly because its income tax takes 3.5% of a median income against 5.5% in Kansas.
Kansas
Moderate tax burden · COL index 86
Wins 2 categories
Kentucky
Moderate tax burden · COL index 85
Wins 12 categories
Taxes: Kansas vs Kentucky
Kansas has a graduated income tax topping out at 5.7%, which works out to 5.5% on a median income of $74,580, or $4,074 a year. Kentucky has a flat 4% income tax, which works out to 3.5% on a median income of $74,580, or $2,610 a year. Kentucky wins on income tax at 2026 rates.
Property tax is 1.24% of home value a year in Kansas and 0.78% in Kentucky (Tax Foundation, 2023); on each state's median home that is $2,728 against $1,677, so Kentucky has the lower rate.
Combined state and local sales tax averages 8.68% in Kansas and 6.00% in Kentucky; Kentucky is lower.
Add it up for a household earning $74,580 (the 2022 national median) and owning the median home: $8,744 a year in Kansas, $5,630 in Kentucky. Kentucky is cheaper on total state and local tax.
Housing and cost of living
Kansas's cost of living index is 86 and Kentucky's is 85, where 100 is the national average; Kentucky is about 1% cheaper day to day.
The median home costs $220K in Kansas and $215K in Kentucky (Zillow, 2024), a $5K gap in Kentucky's favor. A two-bedroom rents for about $1,050 a month in Kansas and $1,050 in Kentucky.
Home insurance averages $4,500 a year in Kansas and $1,800 in Kentucky, so Kentucky is cheaper to insure.
Safety
Violent crime runs 410 incidents per 100,000 residents in Kansas and 228 in Kentucky (FBI Crime Data Explorer, 2023); Kentucky is the safer state by that measure, with a rate 80% lower. Property crime is 2,225 per 100,000 in Kansas against 1,770 in Kentucky, again favoring Kentucky.
Health
Life expectancy is 77.2 years in Kansas and 73.5 in Kentucky (County Health Rankings, 2024), a 3.7-year edge for Kansas. The Commonwealth Fund's 2023 scorecard ranks Kansas's health system 29th of 50 and Kentucky's 24th, so Kentucky scores better on care.
9.6% of Kansas residents have no health insurance against 6.8% in Kentucky, which favors Kentucky. Kentucky expanded Medicaid and Kansas did not.
Schools
Education Week's 2023 Quality Counts report ranks Kansas's K-12 schools 26th in the country and Kentucky's 34th, 8 places apart in Kansas's favor. Kentucky runs a school-choice voucher program; Kansas does not.
Laws and politics
In the 2024 presidential election Kansas went to Trump by 20 points and Kentucky went to Trump by 26 points.
Kansas has permitless carry and a Giffords gun-law grade of F; Kentucky has permitless carry and a grade of F.
Abortion is protected by state law in Kansas and banned with narrow exceptions in Kentucky, and marijuana is illegal in Kansas and medical only in Kentucky as of 2026. The minimum wage is $7.25 an hour in Kansas and $7.25 in Kentucky.
Climate and risk
Natural disaster risk is very high in Kansas (tornado, blizzard, drought) and moderate in Kentucky (tornado, flood, ice-storm), so Kentucky is the lower-risk state. Annual average air quality index is 38 in Kansas and 40 in Kentucky (under 50 is good), favoring Kansas.
Tax figures use a household earning the national median income and owning each state's median home, at tax year 2026 rates, last checked against state sources on 2026-09-14. The table below has every number.
Taxes
Housing & Cost of Living
Crime & Safety
Healthcare
Education
Childcare
Utilities & Daily Costs
Social Policy
Category wins
2
Kansas
12
Kentucky
Run the full slider tool to score these states against your specific income, home value, retirement, and lifestyle priorities.
Score For My Profile →Questions people ask
Is Kansas or Kentucky better to live in?
Kentucky wins more of the measures that decide a move. Kentucky on taxes ($5,630 a year for a median household against $8,744); Kentucky on everyday costs (index 85 against 86); Kentucky on safety (228 violent crimes per 100,000 against 410); Kansas on schools (ranked 26th against 34th).
Which is cheaper, Kansas or Kentucky?
Kentucky is cheaper day to day: cost of living index 85 against 86. The median home is $220K in Kansas and $215K in Kentucky (2024). On state and local taxes Kentucky saves a median household about $3,100 a year.
Does Kansas or Kentucky have lower taxes?
Kentucky. A household earning $74,580 pays about $8,744 a year in Kansas ($4,074 income tax, $2,728 property tax on the median home and $1,942 in sales tax) and $5,630 in Kentucky ($2,610 income tax, $1,677 property tax on the median home and $1,342 in sales tax), at 2026 rates.
Which is safer, Kansas or Kentucky?
Kentucky, on the FBI's 2023 figures. Violent crime is 410 per 100,000 residents in Kansas and 228 in Kentucky; property crime is 2,225 against 1,770.
Which has better schools, Kansas or Kentucky?
Kansas. Education Week's 2023 Quality Counts report ranks Kansas 26th of 50 for K-12 and Kentucky 34th. Kentucky also offers school-choice vouchers.
Is Kansas or Kentucky better for retirees?
Kentucky is friendlier to retirees on paper. Kansas taxes Social Security, partly exempts pensions and has no estate or inheritance tax; Kentucky does not tax Social Security, partly exempts pensions and has an inheritance tax. Property tax on a median home is $2,728 a year in Kansas and $1,677 in Kentucky.