Augusta, GA vs Charlotte, NC
Moving from Augusta to Charlotte? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($253,524 → $390,321 median home) and taxes.
Augusta vs Charlotte 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 Augusta, GA, you'd need about $106,662 in Charlotte, NC (+$6,662).
Livability — Augusta, GA: 72 · Charlotte, NC: 66 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 4,042 sqft in Augusta vs 2,561 sqft in Charlotte ($124 vs $195 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Augusta, GA | Charlotte, NC | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $17,748 | $20,880 | +$3,132 |
| Groceries | $4,809 | $4,834 | +$25 |
| Transportation | $3,515 | $3,130 | −$385 |
| Utilities | $1,656 | $1,752 | +$96 |
| Insurance | $2,100 | $2,000 | −$100 |
| Taxes | $9,236 | $8,740 | −$496 |
| Total | $39,064 | $41,336 | +$2,272 |
Side by side
| Metric | Augusta, GA | Charlotte, NC |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 91.2 | 97.3 |
| Unemployment rate | 6.45% | 4.71% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 4.0% | 10.0% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 42 | 42 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.19 | $5.54 |
| Median home price | $253,524 | $390,321 |
| Home price ÷ income | 4.0× | 5.1× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 2.8% | -0.4% |
| Price per square foot | $124 | $195 |
| Median rent | $1,479 | $1,740 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 8.9% | 9.9% |
| Combined sales tax | 7.38% | 6.98% |
| Capital gains tax | 5.39% | 4.25% |
| Property tax rate | 0.68% | 0.72% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,400 | $6,600 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $9,500 | $10,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | None | 1.10% |
| Avg commute (min) | 24 | 27 |
| Home insurance / yr | $2,100 | $2,000 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,900 | $1,400 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $700 | $800 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 15.4 | 16.3 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.15 | 3.20 |
| Natural gas / mo | $74 | $62 |
| Water & sewer / mo | $123 | $78 |
| Home internet / mo | $88 | $80 |
| Violent crime /100k | 370 | 400 |
| Avg summer high °F | 89 | 89 |
| Avg winter low °F | 34 | 30 |
| Annual precipitation (in) | 50.4 | 43.6 |
| Annual snowfall (in) | 2.2 | 3.5 |
| Sunshine (% possible) | 60% | 62% |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 2 | 3 |