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CityLedger

Jackson vs Lafayette

Metro-area medians — Jackson, MS Metro Area vs Lafayette, LA Metro Area — not the cities proper.

Jackson comes out ahead, winning 8 of the 9 clearly-decided measures.

Jackson and Lafayette cost about the same to live in, but Jackson households earn about 7% more. Adjusted for local prices, a typical paycheck stretches further in Jackson.

For your salary & household

Enter your pay and household size to see what it's really worth here — the numbers update live and the link stays shareable.

Jackson, MS
$58,555
take-home / yr · 22% to tax
$65,756
real value after local prices
Lafayette, LA
$59,439
take-home / yr · 21% to tax
$68,156
real value after local prices

On $75,000 for just you, Lafayette leaves you about $2,400/yr better off after tax and local prices.

Take-home estimates a single filer taking the standard deduction (2025 federal brackets, FICA, and state income tax) and isn't tax advice. “Real value” rebases take-home to average U.S. prices using the BEA cost-of-living index; the per-person figure uses the OECD square-root equivalence scale.

Measure
Jackson
Lafayette
Livability (CityLedger)
39/100
33/100
Cost of living (price level, US = 100)
89.0
87.2
Cost-adjusted income (pay's real value)
$72,809
$69,405
Median household income
$64,835
$60,527
Median rent
$1,100/mo
$968/mo
Median home value
$210,000
$222,100
Unemployment
4.8%
5%
Bachelor's degree or higher
32.5%
29.5%
Average commute
24.9 min
26.6 min
Air quality (median AQI)
48
51
Avg temperature
66°F
69°F

Choose Jackson for

  • + Livability (CityLedger)
  • + Cost-adjusted income (pay's real value)
  • + Median household income
  • + Median home value
  • + Unemployment
  • + Bachelor's degree or higher
  • + Average commute
  • + Air quality (median AQI)
Full Jackson profile →

Choose Lafayette for

  • + Median rent
Full Lafayette profile →

Jackson vs Lafayette — frequently asked

Is Jackson cheaper than Lafayette?
They are about even — the overall cost of living in the Jackson and Lafayette metros is within 3% of each other (BEA Regional Price Parities), so neither is meaningfully cheaper.
Which has higher household income, Jackson or Lafayette?
Jackson has the higher median household income — $64,835 versus $60,527 (U.S. Census Bureau, ACS), about 7% more.
Does a paycheck go further in Jackson or Lafayette?
A paycheck stretches further in Jackson. Adjusted for local prices, the median income is worth $72,809 there versus $69,405 in Lafayette.
Which has cheaper rent, Jackson or Lafayette?
Lafayette has cheaper rent — a median of $968/mo versus $1,100/mo (U.S. Census Bureau, ACS).