Remember that feeling when you first fell in love? The sky probably seemed bluer, the air cleaner, the sun brighter and the world happier.
Guess where else you can experience that feeling? In the great state of Kansas. Statistically, due to its location and size, Kansas boasts bluer and brighter skies, and its residents are happier for a variety of reasons. Let’s consider just five of them:
Kansas is incredibly affordable.
Most people live on a budget because they have to. In Kansas, your budget stretches further than all but one state. That’s because the cost of living in Kansas is 11% below the national average. From gas and groceries to auto insurance and ad valorem taxes, virtually everything costs less in Kansas. Consider this: the average cost of living in the U.S. is 100. In Dodge City, Kansas City, Salina, Pittsburg, Wichita and Manhattan, the highest COL is just 93.7. Statewide, it is 89.0.
Kansas boasts family-friendly communities.
WalletHub in 2019 named Leawood the Best Small City to Live in America. McPherson, Hays and Andover all made the 50 Best Places to Live in America in USA Today in 2019; and Livability.com named both Manhattan and Lawrence to its Top 50 Best Places to Live in 2019. For young people, it’s even better. Olathe was named No. 1 for where millennials are buying homes, and Lawrence was ranked No. 8 on the list of Best Cities for Recent College Grads.
You get a huge chunk of your life back in Kansas.
People who commute to work will find that there’s no place like driving to a job in Kansas. The average daily commute time in the Sunflower State is just 19 minutes, which ranks sixth lowest in the country. Compare that to Texas, where workers spend an average of 29 minutes a day in their cars. In North Carolina, they spend 25 minutes commuting. Moreover, Kansas consistently ranks in the top 10 for having the best roads in America.
If you’re seeking youth and diversity, you’ve found a good home in Kansas.
Kansas is the melting pot of the American Heartland, and it has the numbers to prove it. The state’s average age is just 37, and the three most common languages spoken here are English, Spanish and Vietnamese. In Garden City’s high school, 25 different languages are spoken. The Wichita school district has children from 97 countries, and more than 63 different languages are spoken in homes of students in the Kansas City school district.
Want to enjoy the great outdoors? Step outside in Kansas.
Whether canoeing or kayaking, biking or swimming, or just walking the trails, the outdoor enthusiast will find that getting lost in the beauty of Kansas is a treat in itself. Fishing, hunting, camping and hiking are all popular pastimes in Kansas, and a plethora of state parks and national parks make all of those things easy to do and enjoy.
