State comparison
Kansas vs Rhode Island: which state is better to live in?
Kansas costs a median household about $1,600 a year less in state and local taxes than Rhode Island, mostly because property tax on a median home runs $2,728 a year against $5,590 in Rhode Island.
Kansas
Moderate tax burden · COL index 86
Wins 8 categories
Rhode Island
High tax burden · COL index 114
Wins 7 categories
Taxes: Kansas vs Rhode Island
Kansas has a graduated income tax topping out at 5.7%, which works out to 5.1% on a median income of $74,580, or $3,794 a year. Rhode Island has a graduated income tax topping out at 5.99%, which works out to 3.8% on a median income of $74,580, or $2,861 a year. Rhode Island wins on income tax at 2026 rates.
Property tax is 1.24% of home value a year in Kansas and 1.30% in Rhode Island (Tax Foundation, 2023); on each state's median home that is $2,728 against $5,590, so Kansas has the lower rate.
Combined state and local sales tax averages 8.68% in Kansas and 7.00% in Rhode Island; Rhode Island is lower.
Add it up for a household earning $74,580 (the 2022 national median) and owning the median home: $8,464 a year in Kansas, $10,017 in Rhode Island. Kansas is cheaper on total state and local tax.
Housing and cost of living
Kansas's cost of living index is 86 and Rhode Island's is 114, where 100 is the national average; Kansas is about 33% cheaper day to day.
The median home costs $220K in Kansas and $430K in Rhode Island (Zillow, 2024), a $210K gap in Kansas's favor. A two-bedroom rents for about $1,050 a month in Kansas and $1,800 in Rhode Island.
Home insurance averages $4,500 a year in Kansas and $1,400 in Rhode Island, so Rhode Island is cheaper to insure.
Safety
Violent crime runs 410 incidents per 100,000 residents in Kansas and 237 in Rhode Island (FBI Crime Data Explorer, 2023); Rhode Island is the safer state by that measure, with a rate 73% lower. Property crime is 2,225 per 100,000 in Kansas against 1,527 in Rhode Island, again favoring Rhode Island.
Health
Life expectancy is 77.2 years in Kansas and 78.1 in Rhode Island (County Health Rankings, 2024), a 0.9-year edge for Rhode Island. The Commonwealth Fund's 2023 scorecard ranks Kansas's health system 29th of 50 and Rhode Island's 4th, so Rhode Island scores better on care.
9.6% of Kansas residents have no health insurance against 4.7% in Rhode Island, which favors Rhode Island. Rhode Island 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 Rhode Island's 13th, 13 places apart in Rhode Island's favor. Neither state runs a school-choice voucher program.
Laws and politics
In the 2024 presidential election Kansas went to Trump by 20 points and Rhode Island went to Harris by 17 points.
Kansas has permitless carry and a Giffords gun-law grade of F; Rhode Island has may-issue carry permits and a grade of B, so Rhode Island regulates guns more tightly and Kansas is the friendlier state for gun owners.
Abortion is protected by state law in both states, and marijuana is illegal in Kansas and legal for adults in Rhode Island as of 2026. The minimum wage is $7.25 an hour in Kansas and $14.00 in Rhode Island.
Climate and risk
Natural disaster risk is very high in Kansas (tornado, blizzard, drought) and moderate in Rhode Island (hurricane, nor-easter, flood), so Rhode Island is the lower-risk state. Annual average air quality index is 38 in Kansas and 32 in Rhode Island (under 50 is good), favoring Rhode Island.
Tax figures use a household earning the national median income and owning each state's median home, at rates in force as of 2026-09-04. The table below has every number.
Taxes
Housing & Cost of Living
Crime & Safety
Healthcare
Education
Childcare
Utilities & Daily Costs
Social Policy
Category wins
8
Kansas
7
Rhode Island
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Score For My Profile →Questions people ask
Is Kansas or Rhode Island better to live in?
It depends on what you weigh most. Kansas on taxes ($8,464 a year for a median household against $10,017); Kansas on everyday costs (index 86 against 114); Rhode Island on safety (237 violent crimes per 100,000 against 410); Rhode Island on schools (ranked 13th against 26th).
Which is cheaper, Kansas or Rhode Island?
Kansas is cheaper day to day: cost of living index 86 against 114. The median home is $220K in Kansas and $430K in Rhode Island (2024). On state and local taxes Kansas saves a median household about $1,600 a year.
Does Kansas or Rhode Island have lower taxes?
Kansas. A household earning $74,580 pays about $8,464 a year in Kansas ($3,794 income tax, $2,728 property tax on the median home and $1,942 in sales tax) and $10,017 in Rhode Island ($2,861 income tax, $5,590 property tax on the median home and $1,566 in sales tax), at 2026 rates.
Which is safer, Kansas or Rhode Island?
Rhode Island, on the FBI's 2023 figures. Violent crime is 410 per 100,000 residents in Kansas and 237 in Rhode Island; property crime is 2,225 against 1,527.
Which has better schools, Kansas or Rhode Island?
Rhode Island. Education Week's 2023 Quality Counts report ranks Kansas 26th of 50 for K-12 and Rhode Island 13th.
Is Kansas or Rhode Island better for retirees?
Kansas is friendlier to retirees on paper. Kansas taxes Social Security, partly exempts pensions and has no estate or inheritance tax; Rhode Island taxes Social Security, partly exempts pensions and has an estate tax. Property tax on a median home is $2,728 a year in Kansas and $5,590 in Rhode Island.