Bowling Green vs Murfreesboro
The short version
- Bowling Green is cheaper overall: prices in its metro run 6% lower than in the Murfreesboro area (BEA 2024).
- The median home costs $241,900 in Bowling Green and $402,100 in Murfreesboro.
- Households earn more in Murfreesboro ($80,108 vs $48,873 median).
- Murfreesboro is growing faster: +12% since 2020 vs +8.6%.
- Commutes are shorter in Bowling Green (18 vs 27 minutes each way).
- Tennessee has no state income tax on wages; Kentucky's top rate is 3.5%.
Side by side
| Bowling Green, KY | Murfreesboro, TN | |
|---|---|---|
| People | ||
| Population (2025) | 78,505 | 171,178 |
| Growth since 2020 | +8.6% | +12% |
| People per square mile | 1,870 | 2,652 |
| Median age | 28.7 | 31.6 |
| Bachelor's degree or higher | 31% | 43% |
| Money and housing | ||
| Median household income | $48,873 | $80,108 |
| Median home value | $241,900 | $402,100 |
| Home value to income | 4.9× | 5.0× |
| Median rent (with utilities) | $998 | $1,481 |
| Metro price level (US = 100) | 90.2 | 96.3 |
| Housing price level (US = 100) | 63.4 | 104.6 |
| $75,000 elsewhere equals | $67,600 | $72,300 |
| Homeowners | 37% | 52% |
| Top state income tax | 3.5% | None |
| Combined sales tax | 6% | 9.61% |
| Work and commute | ||
| Average commute (minutes) | 17.8 | 26.7 |
| Work from home | 6% | 16% |
| Take public transit | 0% | 0% |
| Unemployment (2020-24 avg) | 4.9% | 4.3% |
| Poverty rate | 25.6% | 8.8% |
| Weather | ||
| January high / low | 46° / 28° | 48° / 28° |
| July high / low | 90° / 70° | 89° / 68° |
| Precipitation per year | 50 in | 56 in |
| Snowfall per year | 9 in | 2 in |
| Days 90°F or hotter | 47 | 48 |
| Nights below freezing | 81 | 89 |
| Comfortable months | 2 | 2 |
| Risks, air and home prices | ||
| Natural hazard risk (FEMA, county) | Relatively Moderate | Relatively Moderate |
| FEMA risk score (lower is safer) | 88.5 | 91.7 |
| Good air days, 2025 | 76% | 51% |
| Home prices, past year | +2.8% | +1.6% |
| Home prices, past 5 years | +45.1% | +45.8% |
Highlighted cells are the better value where "better" is clear (lower prices, higher income, shorter commutes). Sources: Census Bureau 2025 estimates and ACS 2020-2024, BEA 2024, NOAA 1991-2020, Tax Foundation 2026.
Weather, month by month
Most comfortable months: Bowling Green: September to October. Murfreesboro: September to October.
Full monthly tables: Bowling Green weather by month and Murfreesboro weather by month.
What $75,000 is worth
A $75,000 salary in an average-priced US city buys about the same as $67,600 in Bowling Green and $72,300 in Murfreesboro. Moving from Bowling Green to Murfreesboro, you would need about $80,100 to match a $75,000 salary.
Moving between Bowling Green and Murfreesboro
IRS county-to-county migration, 2022 to 2023 tax years, for the counties that contain each city. See where else people move from Bowling Green and Murfreesboro.
Which would you pick?
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