Lawrence composite
54.0 /100
Grade B · weighted across 7 dims
Metro comparison
Lawrence vs Wichita
Lawrence, KS and Wichita, KS side by side, cost of living, rent, wages, crime, schools, childcare and environment, all from the same federal datasets so every number is directly comparable.
- 54.0
- Lawrence Life Score
- B
- Lawrence grade
- 60.9
- Wichita Life Score
- A-
- Wichita grade
Head-to-head verdict
Across the seven dimensions, Lawrence scores higher on 3 (wages, safety, childcare) and Wichita on 4 (cost of living, rent, schools, environment). The radar shows the full shape; the tables below break out every figure.
Lawrence vs Wichita across all seven dimensions (each scored 0–100 as a national percentile, bigger area = stronger overall)
Where each metro wins, and by how much
Every dimension is a national percentile (0–100). Each bar leans toward the stronger metro, a long lean is a decisive edge, a near-even split is a toss-up. The radar shows the overall shape; this shows the per-dimension margins.
◖ Lawrence Wichita ◗
cost of living
73
81
wages
44
38
rent
67
81
safety
17
16
schools
30
31
childcare
100
99
environment
51
97
Lawrence and Wichita differ across eleven dimensions of livability. Lawrence has a cost-of-living index of 90.2 vs Wichita's 88.9 (national average = 100). Median salaries are $66,141 in Lawrence and $60,852 in Wichita. A 2-bedroom averages $1,182/mo vs $1,099/mo.
How to read this matchup
Reading the Lawrence vs Wichita Comparison
Lawrence (KS) and Wichita (KS) are assembled here from the same federal data pipeline, BEA Regional Price Parities, HUD Fair Market Rents, BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, FBI Uniform Crime Reports, NCES public-school counts, and EPA environmental indicators, so every number on this page is directly comparable. The overall cost index reads 90.2 for Lawrence against 88.9 for Wichita, a 1.3-point gap on a scale where 100 equals the U.S. average. HUD's 2-bedroom Fair Market Rent, the figure used to set housing-choice voucher payment standards, is $1,182/mo in Lawrence and $1,099/mo in Wichita, a $83/mo difference that compounds to $996 over a year.
On wages, BLS OES reports a median salary of $66,141 across 44,630 jobs in Lawrence against $60,852 across 300,890 jobs in Wichita. Adjusted through the BEA cost-of-living lens, $100,000 earned in Lawrence carries the same local purchasing power as $98,563 in Wichita - the most honest way to read the salary headline, because nominal wages and rents move together in tight metros. State-level violent crime, the most reliable geographic tier FBI UCR publishes, is 456.2 per 100,000 residents in KS vs 456.2 in KS, with property-crime rates of 2090.0 and 2090.0 respectively.
Schools are reported at the state tier by NCES: KS lists 1,354 public schools at a 13.8:1 student-teacher ratio, while KS lists 1,354 schools at 13.8:1, a signal of class-size staffing, though individual district and school-level variation within each state is substantial. Department of Labor center-based infant care runs $5,783/yr in the Lawrence area versus $5,783/yr in Wichita - a line item that shifts the real cost-of-living picture for households with children under five far more than headline RPP does. When these pieces are read together rather than in isolation, Lawrence and Wichita are not simply "cheaper" or "more expensive" - they trade across dimensions, and which metro wins depends on whether your household optimizes for rent, wages, schools, childcare, safety, or environment. Treat the tables below as inputs to that trade-off, not as a single ranking.
Wichita composite
60.9 /100
Grade A- · weighted across 7 dims
Cost-of-living gap
1.3 pts
Lawrence vs Wichita BEA RPP
2-bed rent delta
$83 /mo
Lawrence priced higher
Composite life score on the national 0–100 scale
Lawrence
Lawrence composite (Grade B)
Wichita
Wichita composite (Grade A-)
Composite is a weighted roll-up of seven dimensions: cost (20%), wages (20%), rent (15%), safety (15%), schools (10%), childcare (10%), environment (10%). Each input normalized to a 0–100 percentile across all metros.
💰 Cost of Living BEA →
| Category | Lawrence | Wichita |
|---|---|---|
| Overall RPP | 90.2 | 88.9 |
| Goods | 94.0 | 94.0 |
| Services | 89.3 | 88.5 |
| Rents | 71.6 | 66.2 |
Salary Equivalent Calculator
What salary in Wichita gives the same purchasing power as your salary in Lawrence?
$
Equivalent in Wichita:
$98,563
Based on BEA Regional Price Parities (Lawrence: 90.2, Wichita: 88.9, national avg = 100).
🏠 Rent (Fair Market Rent) HUD →
| Bedrooms | Lawrence | Wichita |
|---|---|---|
| Studio | $895/mo | $782/mo |
| 1 Bedroom | $1,006/mo | $849/mo |
| 2 Bedroom | $1,182/mo | $1,099/mo |
| 3 Bedroom | $1,644/mo | $1,444/mo |
| 4 Bedroom | $1,983/mo | $1,784/mo |
💼 Wages & Employment BLS →
| Metric | Lawrence | Wichita |
|---|---|---|
| Avg Median Salary | $66,141 | $60,852 |
| Total Employment | 44,630 | 300,890 |
🛡️ Crime Rates (state-level) FBI →
| Crime Type (per 100K) | Lawrence (KS) | Wichita (KS) |
|---|---|---|
| Violent Crime | 456.2 | 456.2 |
| Property Crime | 2090.0 | 2090.0 |
🎓 Schools (state-level) NCES →
| Metric | KS | KS |
|---|---|---|
| Total Schools | 1,354 | 1,354 |
| Student-Teacher Ratio | 13.8:1 | 13.8:1 |
| Charter Schools | 0.7% | 0.7% |
👶 Childcare Costs (Annual Avg) (state-level) DOL →
| Age Group | KS | KS |
|---|---|---|
| Infant (Center) | $5,783/yr | $5,783/yr |
| Toddler (Center) | $5,711/yr | $5,711/yr |
| Preschool (Center) | $5,533/yr | $5,533/yr |
🌿 Environment (state-level) EPA →
| Metric | KS | KS |
|---|---|---|
| EPA Facilities | 403 | 403 |
| Water Systems | 858 | 858 |
| Superfund Sites | 20 | 20 |
| Water Violations | 3,784 | 3,784 |
Government-verified data - Air quality (EPA AQS), water safety (EPA SDWIS), healthcare access (HRSA), and disaster risk (FEMA NRI) are sourced directly from U.S. federal agencies. No crowdsourced estimates.
💨 Air Quality (EPA AQS) EPA AQS →
| Metric | Lawrence | Wichita |
|---|---|---|
| Median AQI | 38.9 | 47.0 |
| Good Air Days | 75.0% | 56.8% |
| Unhealthy Air Days | N/A | 5 days |
Lawrence air quality shown at state level. Wichita has metro-level data.
💧 Water Safety (EPA SDWIS, state-level) EPA SDWIS →
| Metric | KS | KS |
|---|---|---|
| Water Safety Score | 1/100 | 1/100 |
| Total Violations | 84,344 | 84,344 |
| Health-Based Violations | 33,424 | 33,424 |
| Systems with Violations | 99.1% | 99.1% |
🏥 Healthcare Access (HRSA, state-level) HRSA →
| Metric | KS | KS |
|---|---|---|
| Healthcare Access Score | 0/100 | 0/100 |
| Population in Shortage Area | 100.0% | 100.0% |
| HPSA Designations | 365 | 365 |
HPSA = Health Professional Shortage Area, designated by HRSA. Higher access score = better healthcare availability.
⚠️ Natural Disaster Risk (FEMA NRI, state-level) FEMA NRI →
| Metric | KS | KS |
|---|---|---|
| Disaster Safety Score | 90/100 | 90/100 |
| NRI Risk Score (avg county) | 29.9 | 29.9 |
| Expected Annual Loss Score | 34.2 | 34.2 |
FEMA National Risk Index (NRI) scores are county-level percentiles (0–100). Higher disaster safety score = lower relative risk. State-level values are county averages.
Crime, schools, childcare, and environment data shown at state level. Metro-specific data for these dimensions is not available.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Lawrence more expensive than Wichita? ▼
Lawrence has a cost of living index of 90.2 compared to Wichita's 88.9 (national average = 100). Lawrence is 1.3 points above Wichita on the BEA Regional Price Parity scale.
What is the rent difference between Lawrence and Wichita? ▼
A 2-bedroom apartment averages $1,182/mo in Lawrence vs $1,099/mo in Wichita, based on HUD Fair Market Rent data. Studios range from $895/mo to $782/mo.
How do salaries compare between Lawrence and Wichita? ▼
The average median salary across all occupations is $66,141 in Lawrence and $60,852 in Wichita, according to BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics. After adjusting for cost of living, $100,000 in Lawrence has the same purchasing power as $98,563 in Wichita.
Is Lawrence or Wichita safer? ▼
At the state level, KS has a violent crime rate of 456.2 per 100,000 residents compared to KS's 456.2 per 100,000. Property crime rates are 2090.0 vs 2090.0 per 100,000 respectively, based on FBI Uniform Crime Report data.
How do schools compare between Lawrence and Wichita? ▼
KS has 1,354 public schools with an average student-teacher ratio of 13.8:1, while KS has 1,354 schools at 13.8:1. Charter schools make up 0.7% of KS schools vs 0.7% in KS. Data from the National Center for Education Statistics.
Where does the comparison data come from? ▼
All data comes from official U.S. government sources: Bureau of Economic Analysis (cost of living), HUD (fair market rents), BLS (wages), FBI UCR (crime), NCES (schools), Department of Labor (childcare), EPA (environment, air quality, water safety), HRSA (healthcare access), and FEMA NRI (disaster risk). No crowdsourced estimates or proprietary ratings are used.
Research Guides
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Data from BEA, HUD, FBI UCR, BLS OES, NCES, DOL, EPA AQS, EPA SDWIS, HRSA, and FEMA NRI. Not affiliated with the U.S. Government.
Disclaimer: This comparison is provided for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial, legal, or relocation advice. Consult a qualified professional before making decisions based on this data.
Related
Data sourced from official public datasets, current as of 2026. See our methodology for details. Retrieved and formatted by PlainCompare Editorial