The Kansas City metro area covers counties in Kansas and in Missouri, and together they had 2,270,682 residents on July 1, 2025, by the U.S. Census Bureau’s estimate. The two states differ on income tax, sales tax, the way a home is assessed for property tax, and the deadlines for a car and a driver’s license. The 2026 figures for both states follow, then utilities, school districts, flood zones, transportation and weather.
Taxes in Kansas and Missouri
| Tax | Kansas | Missouri |
|---|---|---|
| State income tax (2026) | 5.2% on the first $23,000 of taxable income ($46,000 on a joint return), 5.58% above that | Graduated rates up to 4.7%, the rate on taxable income above $9,436 |
| State sales tax (October 2026) | 6.5% | 4.225% |
| Home assessment (October 2026) | 11.5% of appraised value | 19% of market value |
Income tax
Kansas has two rates for 2026, 5.2% and 5.58%, and the higher one starts above $23,000 of taxable income ($46,000 on a joint return). Missouri’s 2026 rates are graduated and reach 4.7% on taxable income above $9,436.
Neither state’s rates are settled. Under Kansas law, state revenue is reviewed every August 15, and the income tax rates drop in a year when the revenue tests are met. Amendment 5, on Missouri’s November 2026 ballot, would require the legislature to phase out the state income tax as revenue grows. Anyone who earns pay in one state while living in the other should ask a tax preparer whether to file in both.
The Kansas City, Missouri earnings tax
Kansas City, Missouri has a 1% earnings tax. A resident of the city owes it on all earned income, wherever the work is done. A nonresident owes it on earnings from work performed inside the city. Kansas City voters renewed the tax on April 7, 2026, and state law requires a new vote every five years.
The city reaches into Jackson, Clay, Platte and Cass counties. Confirm that a home is inside the city limits before budgeting for the tax.
Sales tax
As of October 2026, the state sales tax is 6.5% in Kansas, with no state tax on qualifying food, and 4.225% in Missouri. Local taxes come on top. The part of Kansas City in Jackson County totals 8.975% for October to December 2026, and Overland Park’s total is 9.35% from October 1, 2026. Some shopping districts in both states charge an additional tax.
Property tax
A home is taxed on its assessed value: 11.5% of appraised value in Kansas and 19% of market value in Missouri, as of October 2026. Johnson County appraises all property annually as of January 1, with notices of value in the mail by March 1. Missouri reassesses real estate in odd-numbered years.
As an example only, a $350,000 home would be assessed at $40,250 in Kansas and at $66,500 in Missouri. The bill depends on more than that figure, because each city, county, school district and other taxing unit sets its own levy, so compare the tax bills themselves. Jennifer can pull the county’s tax record for any home on your list.
Cars and driver’s licenses
These rules are as of October 2026.
In Kansas
Kansas gives a new resident 90 days from establishing a residence to register a vehicle. If the title is from another state, the Kansas Highway Patrol has to inspect the VIN first. No emissions test is required in Johnson County.
Vehicle property tax is billed every year with the registration. The state’s vehicle property tax lookup estimates it from the make, model and year.
The driver’s license deadline is also 90 days from establishing residency. The Kansas Department of Revenue requires neither a written nor a driving test from someone whose out-of-state license is still valid.
In Missouri
Missouri allows 30 days from the date you become a resident to title a vehicle. The state asks for a VIN and odometer inspection, which a Missouri safety inspection satisfies, and for proof of personal property tax: the county’s paid receipt or, for someone new to Missouri, a statement of non-assessment from the county assessor.
A car owned on January 1 is taxed by the county as personal property, at an assessment of 33 1/3% of its value. In Jackson County the bill is due by December 31.
According to the Missouri Driver Guide, anyone who moves to the state and wants to drive needs a Missouri license, even while holding a valid one from another state. The guide sets a deadline, 30 days, only for commercial drivers.
Setting up utilities
Evergy is the electric utility for more than 1.7 million customers in Kansas and Missouri (2026). Check that the address is in its territory, then start service online.
Johnson County, Kansas
WaterOne, an independent public water utility, has served Johnson County since 1957. In portions of Olathe, the city itself provides water, sewer, stormwater and trash service.
Trash and sewer depend on the city. Overland Park runs no utilities and no trash service of its own: residents hire a hauler that holds a city permit, and sewer is handled by Johnson County Wastewater.
Kansas Gas Service, headquartered in Overland Park, serves more than 653,000 customers (2026) and is the state’s largest natural gas utility. Atmos Energy serves some Overland Park addresses instead.
Kansas City, Missouri
KC Water needs a minimum of 24 hours to start new service, and weekends and city holidays do not count. A $110 deposit goes on the first bill (2026). Weekly trash collection is one of the services the city says the earnings tax pays for. For natural gas, Kansas City is one of the primary service areas of Spire Missouri West.
In any other city, ask the city which utility serves an address.
Internet and address lookups
Internet service differs by street. Enter an address in the FCC National Broadband Map to see which providers serve it. Johnson County’s Location Services shows the utilities, the school district and more for any address in the county.
School districts
School district boundaries in the metro do not match city limits or neighborhood names, and there are dozens of public districts. They include Blue Springs R-IV, Blue Valley, Kansas City Kansas Public Schools, Kansas City Public Schools, Lee’s Summit R-7, North Kansas City Schools, Olathe, Park Hill and Shawnee Mission.
The district goes by the address, so look up each home you are considering. For a Kansas address, there is an address lookup linked from the Kansas State Department of Education, and for a Johnson County address the county’s Location Services gives the district.
For a Missouri address, use the district maps from the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, which says the official boundaries come from county authorities.
Flood zones
Flood zones are mapped along creeks and rivers, and the line can fall between two homes on the same street. Before making an offer, search the address in FEMA’s Flood Map Service Center. Ask the seller about flood insurance and whether water has ever come into the basement.
Highways, the airport and transit
Highways and drive times
Interstates 35, 70, 29 and 435 and US 69 are among the main routes across the metro, and I-435 loops around it.
By OpenStreetMap routing (October 2026), approximate drives from Union Station without traffic are 9 minutes to the Country Club Plaza (3.6 miles), 22 minutes to Overland Park City Hall (13 miles), 31 minutes to Olathe City Hall (22 miles) and 32 minutes to the airport terminal (21 miles).
Kansas City International Airport
Kansas City International Airport (MCI) has one terminal with 40 gates. It opened in February 2023 and replaced three terminals that had been in use since 1972.
The airport listed 57 nonstop destinations in October 2026, some of them seasonal, flown by Alaska, Allegiant, American, Delta, Frontier, Southwest and United.
The streetcar and RideKC buses
There is no fare on the KC Streetcar. The line has run nearly six miles between the City Market and UMKC since its Main Street extension (3.5 miles and 15 stops) opened on October 24, 2025. An extension to the riverfront, 0.7 miles long, followed on May 18, 2026.
Fares returned to RideKC buses on June 1, 2026, on KCATA, Johnson County Transit and Unified Government Transit alike. The fare is $2 a ride or $4 for the day, paid by contactless card or in the RideKCGO app. The bus does not take cash.
Weather and severe weather
The National Weather Service’s daily climate normals for Kansas City International Airport total about 39 inches of precipitation a year, and May, at 5.32 inches, is the wettest month. July’s normal high is about 88°F and January’s normal low is about 20°F. The seasonal snowfall average for 1991 to 2020 is 18.2 inches.
Spring is the severe weather season. Kansas records for 1950 to 2023 put about 74% of the state’s tornadoes in April, May and June, and most tornadoes between 2 and 10 p.m.
Johnson County and Kansas City, Missouri both test their outdoor warning sirens at 11 a.m. on the first Wednesday of the month and move the test to the second Wednesday when the weather is bad. As of 2026, Johnson County has 190 sirens and Kansas City, Missouri maintains more than 100. For another city on the Missouri side, check that city’s siren schedule.
Sirens warn people who are outside and may not be audible indoors, so keep a weather radio or phone alerts as well.
Area guides for Johnson County cities
Jennifer’s area guides take six Johnson County, Kansas cities one at a time and list each city’s school districts, city services and tax levies: Leawood, Lenexa, Olathe, Overland Park, Prairie Village and Shawnee.
Jennifer Fallon is licensed in Kansas and Missouri. You can search homes for sale, estimate a payment with the mortgage calculator, or contact Jennifer about the cities you are comparing.