Topeka at a Glance
Surrounded by the ancient, tallgrass prairie and cleaved by the Kaw River, Topeka is the small-but-mighty capital of Kansas. Way outside Wichita and only kind of close to Kansas City, Topeka may not be the biggest, the brashest or even the best-located city in the Sunflower State. Still, if the downside of living in a city of 125,000 is small-town life, the upside is also small-town life. Time-honored mom-and-pops like Bobo’s Drive-In will still make you a cheeseburger and a Coke float for around $10. Housing prices are also throwback to the 20th century — the median home value hasn’t even hit the $150,000 mark, yet. You can count on annual events like the Spirit of Kansas Festival being well-attended by all your besties because there usually isn’t more than one big thing going on at a time.
But not everything in Topeka is small-scale. Topeka got its start as a railroad and agricultural hub — its Indigenous name means either “a good place to dig potatoes” or “smoky hill” — but the city was rather quickly named the state capital after its founding. More immediately, the founders established Washburn University, which is now one of the top public schools in the Midwest. The college has helped make the capital an important educational and healthcare center for the region, one that contributes vital services to the community and research to the globe.
The cultural amenities in this college town are outsized, too. The Mulvane Museum of Art has a fine collection of more than 6,000 objects, and Topeka’s zoo, rose gardens and parks are all top-notch. With the region’s vast lakes and state parks, you’ll always have an easy escape into nature, and bigger metros are only 1-2 hours away, if you just need a big city fix.
If you are looking for a friendly, affordable Midwestern college town, you may want to consider moving to Topeka. Learn more about the Kansas state capital below, where we’ll address the cost of living, the housing market, the major employers and our favorite activities.
Affordable Living in Topeka
While there are many reasons one might move to Topeka, the most obvious selling point is its affordability. The median home value is just $130,600 — lower than all other major cities in the state and less than half the U.S. median. The median gross rent in Topeka is only $947/month, which pales in comparison to popular cities like Overland Park, where lessees pay out more than $1,455/month.
But housing isn’t the only factor in a city’s cost of living, of course. Other common household expenses can play a big role in whether a family rents or buys, and income levels in a city determine the spending power of its residents. In Topeka, the median household income is $55,902 — one of the lowest in the state, and it’s a far cry from the national median of $78,538.
So how far can a couple stretch that $55,902 in Topeka? According to the MIT Living Wage Calculator, two working adults without children should budget the following for their annual expenses:
- Food: $7,621
- Medical: $6,784
- Housing: $9,062
- Transportation: $11,675
- Civic: $5,504
- Internet/Mobile: $2,138
- Other: $7,900
- Taxes: $7,752
This requires an annual gross income of $58,435 — just above the household median in Topeka. MIT estimates childcare expenses for one child to be $8,841 annually. Wonder what your salary might be if you move to the capital of the Sunflower State? Check out these estimated annual wages in Topeka.
Topeka’s Education and Robust Job Market
What Topeka lacks in size, it makes up for in opportunities. When it comes to the job market, this small city has some genuine heavy-hitters, from Goodyear Tire & Rubber and Frito-Lay to the headquarters of Advisors Excel and Mars, which you can thank for the gift of peanut M&Ms, organic rice pilafs and the noblest line of pet food, Royal Canin, which makes every cat a king.
Well-respected healthcare providers like Stormont Vail Health and the University of Kansas Health System (St. Francis) are a major source of both jobs and medical services in the region — two things that some smaller communities often struggle with.
Educational options in the region are also more wide-ranging than in other comparably sized cities. Washburn University and the Washburn Institute of Technology provide the most immediate access to higher learning and job training, while the University of Kansas, Kansas State University and Emporia State University are all within 60 minutes of the city.
The unemployment rate in Topeka has held steady below the national average for the past five months, settling at 3.6% in April 2025. Over the past year, most industries have seen little change in their employment numbers. The government — the capital city’s single largest sector — employs roughly 27,500 individuals, while education and health services supply 20,100 jobs to the region. Trade, transportation and utilities — another vital business area — supports 17,300 jobs while professional and business services provide 13,400.
But moving to a smaller city in the middle of the country isn’t always an easy sell. That’s why this city launched the Choose Topeka program. Offering incentives to new professionals moving to the region as well as business upstarts, the program rewards new recruits with funding for home purchases, rent and other investments.
Explore Topeka: Locals’ Top Picks
Topeka may look like a small city, but its cultural capital is surprisingly mighty. With knockouts like the Mulvane Art Museum, the Reinisch Rose Garden in Gage Park and the wild wonders of the Topeka Zoo and Conservation Center, this Kansas city has all the main attractions covered. But there’s more to the Sunflower State capital than meets the eye. Here are some of the best things to do in Topeka.
Before we get to the lesser-known perks of being a Topekan, one of the sites that this Kansas state capital wouldn’t be the same without is, of course, the Kansas State Capitol. This lavish, neoclassical statehouse took more than $3 million and 37 years to build — that’s right — the first cornerstone was laid in 1866, and the structure wasn’t completed until after the next century was ushered in. On a guided tour, you can see the beautiful copper dome up close, or you can get an up-close-and-personal look at how Kansas state policies are made by visiting when the legislature is in session. Take it from Dorothy, though — peeking behind a curtain in Kansas isn’t always what it’s cracked up to be.
Although the city was founded by Abolitionists, Topeka has always been a battleground for civil rights and cultural change, none more famous than the fight to desegregate American schools. A visit to the Brown vs. Board of Education National Historic Site, housed at Monroe Elementary School, will take you back to one of the most volatile and consequential periods in the nation’s history.
A gentler stroll through the past can be had at Old Prairie Town at Ward-Mead Park, where an eclectic array of historic buildings, from a Victorian mansion to a one-room schoolhouse transports you to the city’s earlier days. The botanical gardens are a marvel, but the biggest treat here are the root beer floats from the old-timey soda fountain.
Despite the richness of all the city’s historic sites, Topeka’s best attractions aren’t in the rearview; they’re looking toward the future. Nowhere is this truer than in the NOTO Arts and Entertainment District. Outdoor sculptures and murals enliven street corners and sidewalks, while venues like the Artismo Gallery & Bistro bring open jam nights, karaoke and stand-up comedy to the scene. The First Fridays Art Walk entices everyone out for gallery-hopping and live music in Redbud Park. On these evenings, the Farmer’s Market also keeps night owl-hours from 4-10 p.m., so you can pick up your weekly staples while you drink and dine, leaving Saturday mornings free for sleeping in.
If sleeping in on a Saturday has become a distant memory since having little ones, consider making the most of those early hours by packing a picnic brunch for a laid-back trip outdoors. Topekans have an embarrassment of riches when it comes to nature, from kayaking and catfishing on the Kaw — the pet name of the Kansas River — to sailing and swimming at Lake Shawnee. And while outsiders sometimes shrug at Kansas’ landlocked terrain, Topekans know better. There is absolutely nothing ordinary about the Flint Hills of Kansas, and if you want to enjoy it in all its unspoiled wonder, the Tallgrass Prairie National Preserve is always eagerly awaiting hikers.
If you’re thinking less sweating and more pancake-eating, rent a cabin at Perry State Park and let everyone do their own thing. Fishing, s’mores-making and internet-avoidance top our list — we prefer to keep our eyes on the trees and skies, where you might see a pileated woodpecker, with its telltale red crest, or the sun-bright wings of the eastern meadowlark alighting out of the grasslands. Don’t discount this park in the winter, either — perched on the edge of Perry Lake; you’re very likely to see bald eagles fishing for breakfast.
Some of Topeka’s best events are also outdoors. The Spirit of Kansas Festival at Lake Shawnee, Fiesta Topeka, India Mela’s Bollywood Movie Night, the Kansas Book Festival and — Santa’s personal fave — the Miracle on Kansas Avenue are just a handful of the most popular. Try to stay on the jolly man’s nice list this year. Though it’s not outdoors, the Sunflower Music Festival is one of best events in the city, IOHO. Families can enjoy an entire week of symphony, jazz, and chamber ensemble performances at Washburn University’s White Concert Hall — for free! Now that’s music to our ears.
Thinking About Moving to Topeka? Here’s Your Next Step
Is your family ready to move to Topeka? If you’ve decided that the Kansas state capital is for you, Mayflower will be with you Every Step of the Way®. As America’s most-trusted moving company for nearly 100 years, Mayflower’s long-distance movers can help you relocate to Topeka from anywhere in the U.S.
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