Atlanta, GA vs Waco, TX
Moving from Atlanta to Waco? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($382,938 → $256,772 median home) and taxes.
Atlanta vs Waco 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 Atlanta, GA, you'd need about $90,699 in Waco, TX (−$9,301).
Livability — Atlanta, GA: 66 · Waco, TX: 73 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 2,677 sqft in Atlanta vs 4,088 sqft in Waco ($187 vs $122 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Atlanta, GA | Waco, TX | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $22,080 | $16,848 | −$5,232 |
| Groceries | $4,926 | $4,647 | −$280 |
| Transportation | $3,515 | $3,675 | +$160 |
| Utilities | $1,656 | $1,836 | +$180 |
| Insurance | $2,100 | $3,600 | +$1,500 |
| Taxes | $10,533 | $5,779 | −$4,754 |
| Total | $44,810 | $36,385 | −$8,426 |
Side by side
| Metric | Atlanta, GA | Waco, TX |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 100.5 | 91.1 |
| Unemployment rate | 5.04% | 4.56% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 6.9% | 5.7% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 42 | 42 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.72 | $5.19 |
| Median home price | $382,938 | $256,772 |
| Home price ÷ income | 4.6× | 4.3× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | -2.1% | -0.8% |
| Price per square foot | $187 | $122 |
| Median rent | $1,840 | $1,404 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 8.9% | 8.6% |
| Combined sales tax | 7.38% | 8.20% |
| Capital gains tax | 5.39% | None |
| Property tax rate | 0.85% | 1.53% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,400 | $6,800 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $9,500 | $9,500 |
| Vehicle property tax | None | None |
| Avg commute (min) | 32 | 21 |
| Home insurance / yr | $2,100 | $3,600 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,900 | $2,100 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $700 | $900 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 15.4 | 17.0 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.15 | 3.00 |
| Natural gas / mo | $74 | $52 |
| Water & sewer / mo | $123 | $134 |
| Home internet / mo | $88 | $83 |
| Violent crime /100k | 370 | 430 |
| Avg summer high °F | 89 | 96 |
| Avg winter low °F | 34 | 38 |
| Annual precipitation (in) | 50.4 | 36.4 |
| Annual snowfall (in) | 2.2 | 1.0 |
| Sunshine (% possible) | 60% | 64% |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 2 | 2 |
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