Moving to Wyoming

Quick facts

Wyoming's defining fact is its population: 588,753 people as of the Census Bureau's Vintage 2025 estimate, the fewest of any US state, growing only modestly (+0.3%, +2,031 residents, July 2024-July 2025). That smallness shapes nearly everything else in this record. On the upside: no state income tax (Wyoming has simply never levied one, and a 1974 constitutional amendment makes enacting one exceptionally hard rather than flatly illegal), a statewide effective property tax rate around 0.55% -- among the lowest in the nation -- and a low 4% base sales tax (average combined rate about 5.36% with local option taxes). Housing runs genuinely affordable statewide too, with a $338,888 average home value below the roughly $355,000-$375,000 range commonly cited nationally, though this record discloses Jackson/Teton County as a real, extreme outlier (a $2,098,858 median Jackson sale price, driven by Grand Teton and Yellowstone tourism demand against a genuinely limited land supply). On the cost side working against Wyoming: the state's tiny, dispersed population means real, disclosed healthcare-access gaps most movers don't expect -- U.S. News ranked Wyoming #38 nationally in Healthcare for 2026 (#47 specifically in Access), and 18 of Wyoming's 23 counties carry a federal health-professional-shortage designation. Wyoming's economy leans heavily on mineral extraction (coal from the Powder River Basin, the largest coal-producing region in the US; oil and natural gas; trona, the world's largest known deposit) -- a real structural dependency exposed to genuine commodity-price volatility, alongside a substantial national-park tourism economy (Yellowstone drew 4,762,988 visits in 2025, its second-busiest year on record; Grand Teton drew 3,800,648). Wyoming's climate is a real, defining feature too: it's the windiest state in the nation (12.9 mph average statewide), with genuinely harsh, long winters and real, elevated wildfire risk (one source ranks it 2nd among the Lower 48 states) balanced against zero hurricane exposure given its landlocked location. Politically, Wyoming carries the nation's most decisively Republican identity: Trump's 71.60% vote share in 2024 was the highest any presidential nominee has received in Wyoming's history, and Republicans hold a veto-proof legislative supermajority. Wyoming's #4-nationally U.S. News Education ranking is a genuine, disclosed bright spot; crime runs genuinely low (43.4% below the national violent-crime average), though both violent and property crime rose year-over-year against the national trend.

Explore Wyoming in depth

• Moving to Wyoming
• Cost of Living in Wyoming
• Housing Market in Wyoming
• Buying a Home in Wyoming
• Renting in Wyoming
• Property Taxes in Wyoming
• Income Taxes in Wyoming
• Sales Tax in Wyoming
• Homeowners Insurance in Wyoming
• Flood & Hurricane Risk in Wyoming
• Hurricane Preparedness in Wyoming
• Climate & Weather in Wyoming
• Jobs & Economy in Wyoming
• Schools in Wyoming
• Colleges & Universities in Wyoming
• Crime & Safety in Wyoming
• Healthcare in Wyoming
• Traffic & Transportation in Wyoming
• Airports & Getting Around Wyoming
• Best Places to Live in Wyoming
• Best Places to Retire in Wyoming
• A Guide to Wyoming's Regions
• Pros and Cons of Living in Wyoming
• Who Should Move to Wyoming?
• Who Should NOT Move to Wyoming?
• Retiring in Wyoming
• Retirement Communities in Wyoming
• Living in Wyoming for Families
• Living in Wyoming for Remote Workers
• Wyoming for College Students
• Snowbird Living in Wyoming
• Military Relocation to Wyoming
• Beaches & Coastal Living in Wyoming
• Utilities & Everyday Costs in Wyoming

The tradeoffs

Taxes

Wyoming levies no state income tax (Wyoming Constitution, Article 15, Section 18 (adopted by voter referendum, November 5, 1974); Ballotpedia, "Article 15, Wyoming Constitution"; WyoFile, "The long winding road to a Wyoming corporate income tax"; Cowboy State Daily, "Tall And Booming: Nels Smith Is Why There's No State Income Tax In Wyoming"). The statewide average effective property tax rate is 0.55%, though this varies significantly by county -- from 0.26% to 0.72%. The median annual property tax bill statewide is $1,458.

Insurance

Wyoming's homeowners insurance runs genuinely affordable relative to the national picture -- a real, disclosed $1,805-$2,396/year statewide spread across sources reviewed this pass, with one source citing Wyoming running about 28% below the national average. This record could not find a single, current, wildfire-specific premium surcharge figure for Wyoming's most fire-exposed forested and foothill areas (distinct from the statewide average) -- that gap is disclosed honestly rather than estimated; a prospective mover to a forested or foothill Wyoming property, particularly near Jackson, Sheridan, or Cody, should get a current, address-specific quote directly given the state's real, disclosed wildfire risk (see metrics.hazards).

Major cities we've researched in Wyoming