City comparison
St. Louis, MO is about 225 miles (350 km) from West Lafayette, IN in a straight line. By road, the drive is roughly 275 miles, or about 4 h 30 min behind the wheel at highway speeds.
Driving distance is a rough estimate (great-circle × 1.25); driving time assumes a 60 mph blended average. Real trips run 10–20% longer with stops.
A direct flight from St. Louis, MO to West Lafayette, IN takes about 26 min, covering roughly 225 miles in a straight line. Connecting itineraries with a layover typically add 1–3 hours.
Block-to-block estimate at ~500 mph cruise, including taxi, climb, and descent — what an airline would publish, not pure airborne time.
St. Louis has a population of 298,018, vs 44,861 in West Lafayette — about 6.6× larger by population. By land area, St. Louis covers about 62 sq mi vs 14 sq mi for West Lafayette.
Population from US Census ACS. Land area from the Census Gazetteer (city proper, excluding inland water).
Cost indices by category, with the US city average (100) marked.
Index: 100 = US city average. Lower is more affordable.
Side-by-side costs, salaries, and sub-category indices.
| Metric | St. Louis | West Lafayette | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $938/mo | $1,056/mo | 12.6% higher in West Lafayette |
| Median home value | $174,100 | $303,300 | 74.2% higher in West Lafayette |
| Median household income | $52,941 | $30,317 | 74.6% higher in St. Louis |
| Groceries index | 99.7 | 94.5 | 5.5% higher in St. Louis |
| Utilities index | 71.9 | 86.9 | 20.8% higher in West Lafayette |
| Transportation index | 98.5 | 98.9 | ≈ equal (West Lafayette slightly higher) |
| Healthcare index | 98.7 | 99.1 | ≈ equal (West Lafayette slightly higher) |
How much you'd need to earn in the other city to keep the same standard of living.
If you earn $100,000 in St. Louis, you'd need $99,989 in West Lafayette to maintain your standard of living.
Climate, safety, and demographics side by side.
St. Louis and West Lafayette have nearly identical overall cost-of-living indices. If you earn $80,000 in St. Louis, you'd need about $79,991 in West Lafayette to keep the same standard of living.