Are you considering a move from Nashville Tennessee to Louisville Kentucky? You might be wondering which city really has the best cost of living. Maybe you have asked yourself this question: where will I actually make more money and how far can that money get me in regards to the standard of living? If you have been wondering any of these questions, then this is the article for you.
When comparing major cities, understanding the financial landscape is crucial. In this deep dive into Nashville vs Louisville, we will explore housing, salaries, transportation, and grocery costs to determine which city offers the better value for your hard-earned dollars.
The Insider’s View on Relocating
We spoke to someone who lives in a gorgeous house that was just put up and recently made the move to Louisville. This gives us an insider’s view of what it is like to relocate to this area. Brandt Fry recently moved from Nashville to Louisville Kentucky and provided his perspective on the transition.
His overall feeling about that move was that it was an easy transition. Louisville is a great place to live, very family-oriented, and the cost of living is immaculate—among the best he has seen, having traveled quite a bit. It was easy to find a house, and there are lots of great family-friendly neighborhoods.
Surprises in the Move
One of the biggest surprises that he and his wife were actually really pumped about was daycare. They found affordable daycare probably within the first week. Then they were able to find a house within a month, looking very quickly. The daycare was good too; his wife was like nine months pregnant, and he emphasized it was critical that they find daycare options before they move up there. They were able to do that.
Another cool thing is the roadways. It is really easy to get not only to the house but to work and to daycare. He is 25 to 30 miles from work, but it is a 25-minute commute. It is awesome—not the hour-long commute you see in some of these bigger cities.
With Louisville, you actually get a lot of the same attractions that you do in other major metro areas. There are a lot of attractive things about this area. While they don’t have top-level sports teams like the Titans in Nashville, that is the only thing they don’t have compared to some other major cities.
Housing: The Biggest Differentiator
The first cost of living expense that we want to look at is housing. I know a lot of you are wondering how far will my money go to buy a house in Louisville Kentucky or Nashville Tennessee. We took a look at Rocket Mortgage, which has a section on their website where they give a market update every month.
Louisville Housing Market
Looking back to September of 2022, the median sales price in Louisville Kentucky was $230,507. This is actually a 7.2 percent increase since September of 2021, and the housing prices have gone up about fifteen thousand dollars.
The cost of living index score for housing in Louisville is 70.9. A score of 100 reflects our national average, so if the score is below 100, then that category is below the national average.
Nashville Housing Market
If we look at the Rocket Mortgage housing update for Nashville Tennessee in September of 2022, we see that the median sales price is $500,371. Now this is significantly higher than the median sales price for Louisville Kentucky. Housing prices in Nashville are up 18% in comparison to September of 2021, which figures out to be about an $83,000 increase.
The cost of living index score for housing in Nashville is 117.1. So when we look at the housing category, it is obvious that Louisville has a lower cost of living.
To visualize this, we tried to find two comparable houses in each city—both Cape Cods, both close to downtown. A home in Nashville Tennessee sold for $505,000 back on August 31st, 2022. It is a very cute home. If we take a look at a similar listing in Louisville Kentucky, we see that it is listed for $350,000 currently. You can see both are similar Cape Cod houses, both very cute, both similar in size, but there is an obvious price difference here between these two houses.
Salary and Employment: Where Do You Earn More?
The next category I want to look at is salary. How much money are you actually going to be able to make in both cities?
The average salary of someone living in Louisville Kentucky according to payscale.com is right around $65,000 per year. This is slightly less than what they quote for Nashville Tennessee, which is $67,000 per year. So at first glance, you think you might be making a little bit more in Nashville Tennessee.
However, this is actually a reflection of maybe there are just more people in Nashville that make more money, like all those country music stars pulling their average up. If we actually take a similar job that you might have in Louisville Kentucky versus Nashville Tennessee, we actually find that Louisville employers pay on average 1.5% higher than that same job in Nashville Tennessee.
So if we are comparing Apples to Apples as far as jobs, then the Louisville jobs pay a little bit more—not a lot, but a little bit more. If you want to say who is the winner for salary, I’d say they are pretty equal, but Louisville has a little bit of an edge in that category. Additionally, the estimated salary change favors Louisville, meaning you’re going to make a teeny bit more there.
Transportation and Commuting
The next category is transportation. This category is always a little bit of a mystery. Louisville historically and currently is higher—about 3% higher than other places in the U.S.—for their cost of transportation. I honestly am not sure why this is.
When we look at that cost of living index scale in regards to transportation, we see that Louisville is 103.2 and Nashville sits at 100.7. So we do see that reflected: the Nashville transportation costs are right in line with the national average, and Louisville is three percent higher.
However, the commute experience differs. As Brandt mentioned, in Louisville, you can be 25 miles from work but have a 25-minute commute. In Nashville, getting anywhere can be a challenge. The airport in Louisville is easy to get in and out of, whereas Nashville’s airport can be more congested.
Louisville also has a universal location advantage. You can get from here to Nashville, Cincinnati, Indiana, and St. Louis fairly easily. It opens up the door for a lot of options to go drive places. While Nashville has the big attractions as Music City, Louisville is kind of a big city with a small town feel but still has the hustle and bustle.
If you are someone who prefers exploring different regions, you might find yourself comparing Sicily or Mallorca for vacation, but for daily living, the connectivity of Louisville is a strong practical benefit.
Food and Groceries: The Milk Shock
Let’s move on to food and groceries because I thought that this was really interesting. I set up a pickup order in Louisville Kentucky at Kroger and I also set up a pickup order in Nashville Tennessee at Kroger and I compared some of the prices.
The first price that I compared was that of Dave’s bread. It was exactly the same in both places: $5.99. The next thing I looked at was the price of a dozen eggs. Again, the eggs were tied at $5.39.
But the thing that shocked me so much was one gallon of 2% milk, the Kroger Brand in both places. I don’t think you will believe it. In Louisville Kentucky, the Kroger milk for one gallon costs $1.49. In Nashville, it is $3.59. What in the world? Almost triple the cost.
We also see this more expensive reality in Nashville in regards to their cost of living index scores for this category. For Louisville Kentucky, the food and grocery score was 97, whereas Nashville TN score was 102.
One side note here: if you are shopping at Kroger, you might want to consider shopping at Aldi. That is where I shop, and all of these prices are a lot lower over at Aldi.
Lifestyle and Entertainment
Nashville has got all the big attractions; it is Music City. It has its big attractions, and there is always something going on there. Louisville has come out big with the new soccer team with the brand new stadium, which is actually really cool. They actually heat their grass, so it is actually not even a turf like most days; it is actually real grass and there are heaters on it right now.
Louisville has lots of open parks, lots of wide open spaces for kids and dogs running. It is a great place to live because it is family-friendly. It is the place of the first hand transplant with a lot of good hand therapy options.
When it comes to college sports, Louisville fans are passionate and care deeply about University of Louisville sports. It is cool to see fans be so loyal to their school. You can check out the food scene a little bit here; it is good food, good people.
In terms of development, Louisville has great bones. The avenues in and out of downtown and the room and the parking in the streets are great. There are a lot of buildings that have a lot of good architecture. If the city would get some investors to put some life into those things, it would spur some development. Fourth Street Live is a great example; right now not a lot is happening, but it has the parts and the pieces to be a mover and a shaker.
Comparing the vibe, you might find boring cruises less appealing than the dynamic city life, or conversely, appreciate the quieter pace of Louisville over the frenetic energy of Nashville. Just as residents in Memphis might worry when sirens goes off, safety and peace of mind are factors in any city, and Louisville is described as very friendly and very family-oriented.
Overall Cost of Living Comparison
When we look at the overall scores of Nashville Tennessee versus Louisville Kentucky where they rated kind of overall on the national cost of living index, we see that the overall cost of living score for Louisville Kentucky is 89.7. For Nashville Tennessee, it is 103.1.
When I looked at salary.com, I thought they had some really interesting information about this. When you compare the overall cost of living from Nashville Tennessee to Louisville Kentucky, you can expect to save about 4.2% on all of your expenses. Additionally, you are actually going to gain $3,374 of income annually by living in Louisville Kentucky.
Cost Breakdown Table
Here is a summary of the key financial differences between the two cities.
Nashville vs. Louisville Cost Comparison
| Category | Louisville, KY | Nashville, TN | Winner |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing Index | 70.9 | 117.1 | Louisville |
| Median Home Price | ~$230,507 | ~$500,371 | Louisville |
| Transportation Index | 103.2 | 100.7 | Nashville |
| Grocery Index | 97 | 102 | Louisville |
| Overall Index | 89.7 | 103.1 | Louisville |
| Salary Premium | +1.5% (Same Job) | Baseline | Louisville |
Conclusion
I hope you have enjoyed this article comparing the cost of living between Louisville Kentucky and Nashville Tennessee. I think you will probably agree with me that it is more affordable to live in Louisville Kentucky.
From the significantly lower housing costs—where a comparable home is hundreds of thousands of dollars cheaper—to the surprising savings on groceries like milk, Louisville offers a compelling financial argument. Coupled with slightly higher salaries for the same jobs and an overall annual income gain of over $3,000, the choice for the budget-conscious mover is clear.
While Nashville has the bright lights of Music City, Louisville provides a high quality of life with great parks, family-friendly neighborhoods, and a cost of living that is hard to beat. If you are really someone that is thinking about making a move to the Louisville area, you got to call, you got a text, you got to email or you can sound the bugle because we are going to get you off to the races.