Climate
Chicago logs 15 hot days a year to St. Louis's 62 — Chicago wins by 47. St. Louis also leads on frost days by 17.
Chicago
Feels-like °C
Dinner outside
St. Louis
Feels-like °C
Dinner outside
Cost of Living
St. Louis is $612/mo cheaperChicago runs about $3,665/mo for a balanced lifestyle against St. Louis's $3,053/mo — St. Louis comes in $612 cheaper each month, roughly 20% less.
Chicago
$3,665monthly · balanced
St. Louis
$3,053monthly · balanced
Mobility
On mobility, Chicago scores 3.4 vs St. Louis's 2.4 (0–5 scale), with the biggest gap on public transit. St. Louis still holds an edge on airport accessibility.
Culture
Chicago's culture score of 4.4 sits well above St. Louis's 3.3, with the biggest gap on history museums.
Nature & Outdoors
Chicago's nature & outdoors score of 3.5 sits well above St. Louis's 3.0, with the biggest gap on beach lifestyle. St. Louis still holds an edge on mountain access.
Safety
Chicago's safety score is ~1.7× St. Louis's — in the middle of the scale, while St. Louis lands below average, with the biggest gap on flooding safety.
Career
Chicago's career score of 4.7 sits well above St. Louis's 3.8, with the biggest gap on economic scale.
Social & Community
Chicago's social & community score of 4.0 sits well above St. Louis's 3.4, with the biggest gap on expat-first community.
Food & Dining
On food & dining, Chicago scores 4.6 vs St. Louis's 3.0 (0–5 scale), with the biggest gap on restaurant variety.
Family
On family, Chicago scores 4.0 vs St. Louis's 2.9 (0–5 scale), with the biggest gap on international schools.
Healthcare
Chicago and St. Louis score neck-and-neck on healthcare (2.8 vs 2.8, 0–5 scale).
Air Quality
Chicago averages 8.5 µg/m³ (good) PM2.5 annually versus St. Louis's 8.6 µg/m³ (good) — Chicago breathes ~1% cleaner air (0.1 µg/m³ lower).
Chicago
St. Louis
PM2.5 annual average
WHO classification
City Scale
Both maps at the same real-world scale — 1 cm on either map is the same distance.
Chicago (5.3M) and St. Louis (797K) are 6.7x in population — Chicago is the larger metro, St. Louis the smaller; on land area Chicago spans roughly 4.7x more ground.
Chicago is roughly 5.6x the scale of St. Louis
Combined population & area comparison
ChicagoSt. LouisCity Scale Rankings
Chicago5.3M6.7xSt. Louis797K1xChicago2,046 km²4.7xSt. Louis439 km²1xChicago
St. Louis
Who Thrives Here
Chicago is the stronger fit for the big city energy. Both cities work well for the english speaker.
Also compared
Frequently asked about Chicago vs St. Louis
▶Which is cheaper, Chicago or St. Louis?
▶How does the climate compare between Chicago and St. Louis?
▶Is Chicago or St. Louis safer?
▶Should I move to Chicago or St. Louis?
The best city depends on what matters to you
This comparison shows how Chicago and St. Louis stack up on the data. But your climate preferences, budget, career needs, and lifestyle priorities can shift the picture entirely. A personalized diagnostic finds what fits your life.
Take the free diagnostic10 minutes, no account needed