Anchorage, AK vs Nashville, TN
Moving from Anchorage to Nashville? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($422,103 → $455,958 median home) and taxes.
Anchorage vs Nashville at a glance
Bars scaled to the range across all 200 metros; labels show actual values.
To keep the same standard of living as $100,000 in Anchorage, AK, you'd need about $90,871 in Nashville, TN (−$9,129).
Livability — Anchorage, AK: 49 · Nashville, TN: 63 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 2,132 sqft in Anchorage vs 2,193 sqft in Nashville ($235 vs $228 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Anchorage, AK | Nashville, TN | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $21,240 | $21,576 | +$336 |
| Groceries | $5,224 | $4,715 | −$509 |
| Transportation | $3,350 | $3,130 | −$220 |
| Utilities | $2,952 | $1,608 | −$1,344 |
| Insurance | $1,000 | $2,200 | +$1,200 |
| Taxes | $4,919 | $5,231 | +$312 |
| Total | $38,685 | $38,459 | −$226 |
Side by side
| Metric | Anchorage, AK | Nashville, TN |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 106.8 | 97.0 |
| Unemployment rate | 5.62% | 3.80% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | -0.0% | 8.8% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 26 | 51 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $6.08 | $5.52 |
| Median home price | $422,103 | $455,958 |
| Home price ÷ income | 4.5× | 5.8× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 5.7% | -0.9% |
| Price per square foot | $235 | $228 |
| Median rent | $1,770 | $1,798 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 4.6% | 7.6% |
| Combined sales tax | 1.82% | 9.55% |
| Capital gains tax | None | None |
| Property tax rate | 1.24% | 0.55% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $9,500 | $6,300 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $12,000 | $9,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | None | None |
| Avg commute (min) | 23 | 28 |
| Home insurance / yr | $1,000 | $2,200 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,300 | $1,600 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $650 | $700 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $800 | $350 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 27.4 | 14.9 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.90 | 2.95 |
| Violent crime /100k | 760 | 600 |
| Avg summer high °F | 65 | 89 |
| Avg winter low °F | 5 | 30 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 2 | 2 |