You'd think Minnesotans make more money in general because our taxes and cost of living are so high compared to other states. Here's a surprise for you when you compare to your household income.

Business Insider just published their 2018 report of the average income in every state, and the difference between many states is astonishing.

Most of us are aware that our income is largely determined by the area of the country we live in. For instance, a $50,000 yearly income in California is difficult to live on while that same income in Georgia would be much more comfortable.

The article makes some good points about a term called "price parity", basically what housing, food, and general living expenses cost compared to other states. The higher the price parity, the more it costs you to live compared to the national average.

Minnesota, even with higher taxes and seemingly higher priced homes, scores very well on the price parity scale.

  • Median household income: $63,488
  • Regional price parity out of 100: 97.4
  • Real income: $65,183

What this means is we can buy more with our dollar than the national average and our income is worth more than normal.

Here's how some of our neighboring states scored:

  • Wisconsin: 93.1 ($55,638 / $59,762)
  • North Dakota: 92.3 ($60,5567 / $65,609)
  • South Dakota: 89.3 ($50,238 / $56,258)
  • Iowa: 90.3 ($54,736 / $60,616)

As you can see, Minnesota is by far the highest price parity out of all the states around us, significantly. We're all still lower than the national average, which is great for the upper Midwest.

So you're probably wondering about the ever popular high-cost of California, so here's their score: 113.4 price parity with an average household income of $64,500. Their real income value is $56,878. That's a nearly $8,000 difference each year that you are paying just to live there. Kind of makes you feel warm and fuzzy inside doesn't it?

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