Current Town (Casper) vs My Hometown (Lander)! Here is another Wyoming VS. Video! Join me as I talk about moving to Wyoming and provided a comparison between two of our cities, Casper and Lander. To try to help viewers choose the right place for them, I offer insights into various aspects of both cities. Moving can be challenging, especially when you’re not sure where to go. People often relocate for reasons like jobs, family, or lifestyle changes. The main question for those considering Wyoming as their destination is which city to choose. Casper and Lander prove to be two very different cities in Wyoming. I’ll present you with several statistics, starting with population. Casper has a significantly larger population of around 58,000 compared to Lander’s nearly 8,000 residents. I note that Casper is Wyoming’s second-largest city, while Lander ranks 13th in terms of population. Casper is larger both in terms of population and area, covering 27.24 square miles. Lander, on the other hand, is about 9.38 square miles, making it significantly smaller. I discuss the “location, location, location.” Casper is situated in east central Wyoming, with convenient access to various parts of the state, such as Sheridan, Laramie, and Cheyenne, within a few hours’ drive. Lander, located in west central Wyoming, is about a 2-hour drive from Casper and serves as a gateway to the Wind River Mountains. While both cities boast outdoor features like mountains and rivers, Lander’s accessibility to major interstates is somewhat limited compared to Casper. I then dive into some of the economic aspects. Median household income in Lander is slightly higher than in Casper, though both cities offer a relatively low cost of living. I compare housing costs, revealing that while Lander’s median home price is higher, the cost per square foot is also higher. Therefore, the affordability of homes is a potential advantage of Casper. Next, I compare the tax rates, with both cities having favorable Wyoming state income tax (AKA no state tax) rates and relatively low sales taxes. Casper has a slightly lower sales tax rate compared to Lander. Climate and weather differences are also discussed. Casper receives more rainfall and snowfall compared to Lander. Lander experiences less wind, whereas Casper has higher average wind speeds. Political climate is also briefly discussed. Casper and Lander aligning with Wyoming’s conservative reputation in terms of voter registration percentages for different parties. As far as outdoor recreation is concerned, both cities offer various outdoor activities, including hiking, skiing, fishing, and more. Casper’s advantage lies in downhill skiing, whereas Lander excels in activities related to the Wind River Mountains. I touch on the “vibe” of each city, with Lander offering a more pronounced small-town atmosphere due to its size and eco-focus, while Casper has a somewhat larger city feel. I hope this helps a few future Wyoming residents who aren’t sure where their boots are going to land yet, have a better understanding of how these two cities compare.
Moving can be quite daunting, especially if you don’t quite know where you’d like to go. Quite often, people decide to relocate to a specific destination for a job, family, lifestyle change, etc. Regardless of your reason, if you’ve decided it’s time to move and Wyoming is your destination, the big question is: Where in Wyoming should you move?
Hi, I’m Alisha Collins with the Alisha Collins Real Estate Team. If you’ve watched any of my other videos, you may have noticed that I’m a bit partial to Casper, but I’ll admit, Casper isn’t the only city in Wyoming to consider. This time, we’ll compare Casper versus Lander. Lander’s actually where I grew up. My family moved there when I was five years old and I stayed there until I went to college in Laramie, Wyoming. We are gonna start with some statistics.
Let’s talk about populations. Lander has a smaller population by quite a bit. They have almost 8,000 inhabitants compared to Casper’s 58,000. Casper’s Wyoming’s second largest city. Lander comes in at number 13 on that list. So if you’re looking for a location with a larger population, Casper wins. But which one is larger by area? Casper wins again. But even with a population of over seven times the size, Casper is not seven times larger than Lander. Lander is about 9.38 square miles, which is a little less than 1/3 the size of Casper. Casper is 27.24 square miles.
Now, let’s talk about location, location, location. Casper is located in East Central, Wyoming. Not exactly in the center, but close enough to be able to get to just about anywhere in the state within a few hours. For example, it is just a little over two hours to drive to Sheridan, Laramie, or Cheyenne from Casper. Casper sits at the base of beautiful Casper Mountain with the North Platte River running right through town. Lander is located in West Central Wyoming. Actually, it’s almost directly west from Casper, a little over two hours away. Lander is along the Popo Agie River and is considered the gateway to the Wind River Mountains. Even though it is somewhat central like Casper, Lander isn’t located on major interstates for easy travel. It is connected to many locations through state highways, but it takes a bit longer to get to most places. By comparison, it’s over four hours from Sheridan and Cheyenne and a little over three hours from Laramie. Both Casper and Lander have some excellent outdoor features: mountains, rivers, and many more. You will just have to decide which location feature is best for you.
What about median household income? Depending on what source you check, as usual, Casper’s median household income is right around 61,000 per year. Lander’s median household income is slightly higher, somewhere around 65,000, again, depending on the source. I guess Lander wins on that one at face value, but we’ll consider cost of living in a moment. So what about the average home price? The median home price in Casper is around $286,000 with an average price per square foot of $145. Lander’s median home price is around $365,000, with an average square foot cost of $195. Okay, even with the median income a bit lower than Lander, if you balance that out with a lower cost of a home, I would say that it’s a pretty big win for the Casper column, at least when it comes to the ability to purchase a home. According to bestplaces.net, the overall cost of living in Casper is lower than the cost of living in Lander, but only by 1.8%. bestplaces.net includes things like cost of healthcare and groceries into their calculations. So even though the difference in cost of housing, the other factors seem to balance out in the difference. Since both cities are in Wyoming, they have a great state income tax, zero. Sales tax wise, both are relatively low. Lander is currently sitting at 5.5% compared to Casper’s 5%. Actually, in Casper, it’s 4%, but an additional 1% was voted on by our citizens to fund great improvement projects throughout the city. While 1/2 of a percent difference doesn’t seem that large, it can add up over time, especially on those larger purchases. It looks like Casper wins with the lower sales tax.
Climate and weather are relatively similar in both Lander and Casper, but due to the differences in terrain, there’s a few things that are not the same. When it comes to rainfall, Lander actually gets less than Casper at 11.3 inches per year, compared to Casper’s 13 inches. Casper also gets more snow averaging 70.3 inches per year compared to Lander’s 50.4. Great if you like to ski and snowboard or other snow activities. Another thing that Lander has less than Casper is wind. Casper wins the wind contest every single time. If you call having a higher annual average wind speed winning, that is. Lander has an annual average of about 7.4 miles per hour, compared to Casper’s 12 miles per hour average. If you want to know about the wind situation in Wyoming, check out my video on Wyoming wind to learn more. weatherspark.com has a neat comparison tool where you can see how the different weather stats stack up on the same chart. It looks like Casper and Lander have similar temperatures throughout the year. Casper’s average temperature ranges throughout the year from 18 to 88, and Lander ranges from 15 to 87.
What about political climate? I’m sure it comes to no surprise that Wyoming tends to have a reputation of being pretty conservative, and both Casper and Lander follow that trend closely. Voter registration is listed by county, so it’s a little harder to do a direct comparison between Casper and Lander. Casper is a major city in Natrona County, where Lander shares Fremont County with Riverton and other cities. So when looking at the county, we can see that from the middle of the year, voter registration shows that Fremont County is a little less conservative than Casper. Casper, or rather Natrona County, has around 84.8 of total voters registered as Republicans, compared to Fremont County, which includes Lander, with 81.7%. In both counties, there are a number of unregistered voters and a very small number of voters registered for alternate parties. The percentage of voters registered as Democrats in Fremont County is 11.6%, which is higher than Natrona County’s 8.2%. These percentages tend to shift a bit in election years and around elections, but this trend definitely tends to stay on the conservative side of things.
How does Lander compare to Casper for access to the great outdoors? This one is a bit more difficult, and I’m a bit biased since I live in Casper. But, a lot of Wyoming has wonderful outdoor activities. Casper’s right at the base of Casper Mountain with hiking, skiing, and other snow sports, mountain biking, and camping all within 15 minutes of town. Plus, with the river running right through the town, kayaking, fishing, and floating the river are all just minutes from home. Since Lander is the gateway to the Wind River Mountains, it is pretty clear that you have mountain access and all that entails. Lander is well known for rock climbing, hiking, fishing, and more. Lander is actually known as one of the best outdoor towns in America. One very cool feature of Lander is Sinks Canyon State Park where the Popo Agie River disappears underground into a cavern and comes back out 1/4 of a mile away. One thing that Casper has over Lander is Alpine skiing at Hogadon Basin Ski Area around 10 miles from the heart of Casper. Lander has Nordic skiing, but not downhill skiing. Casper has three reservoirs within about an hour of the city. Alcova, Pathfinder, and Glendo. Lander has Boysen Reservoir just a little bit over an hour away. So yes, plenty of voting options at both as well. If you’re looking for a city with great outdoor adventures, you can’t go wrong with either Lander or Casper.
How about the vibe of each city? Well, that one is kind of hard for me to pick. I grew up in Lander, so a bit of my heart will always be there. Both towns are friendly and great places to live, work, and even raise a family. The small-town vibe is a little more alive in Lander due to its size. Plus, it seems a little bit more eco-focused in Casper. In comparison, Casper is, of course, larger, so has a little bit more of a city vibe about it. So there you have it, Casper versus Lander. I will leave it up to you to decide which city is right for you. Of course, if you decide on either of these areas, we can help you. My team and I love talking to each and every one of you, and we love helping you find the home of your dreams. We have time for you and we can’t wait to talk to you. Remember, we want you to love where you live. See you soon.