SalaryCompareTool

Birmingham, AL vs San Francisco, CA

Moving from Birmingham to San Francisco? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($262,556 → $1,149,215 median home) and taxes.

Birmingham vs San Francisco at a glance

Bars scaled to the range across all 200 metros; labels show actual values.

Birmingham, AL San Francisco, CA Cost-of-living index Birmingham, AL — Cost-of-living index: 92 92 San Francisco, CA — Cost-of-living index: 118 118 Median home price Birmingham, AL — Median home price: $263k $263k San Francisco, CA — Median home price: $1149k $1149k Price per sqft Birmingham, AL — Price per sqft: $128 $128 San Francisco, CA — Price per sqft: $766 $766 Median rent Birmingham, AL — Median rent: $1,448 $1,448 San Francisco, CA — Median rent: $3,258 $3,258 Combined sales tax Birmingham, AL — Combined sales tax: 9.3% 9.3% San Francisco, CA — Combined sales tax: 8.8% 8.8% Property tax rate Birmingham, AL — Property tax rate: 0.50% 0.50% San Francisco, CA — Property tax rate: 0.72% 0.72% Violent crime /100k Birmingham, AL — Violent crime /100k: 450 450 San Francisco, CA — Violent crime /100k: 500 500 Electricity ¢/kWh Birmingham, AL — Electricity ¢/kWh: 17.4 17.4 San Francisco, CA — Electricity ¢/kWh: 35.3 35.3 Avg commute (min) Birmingham, AL — Avg commute (min): 27 27 San Francisco, CA — Avg commute (min): 33 33 Avg summer high °F Birmingham, AL — Avg summer high °F: 91° 91° San Francisco, CA — Avg summer high °F: 84° 84° Avg winter low °F Birmingham, AL — Avg winter low °F: 33° 33° San Francisco, CA — Avg winter low °F: 45° 45°

To keep the same standard of living as $100,000 in Birmingham, AL, you'd need about $128,100 in San Francisco, CA (+$28,100).

Livability — Birmingham, AL: 71 · San Francisco, CA: 35 (0–100).

What your home budget buys

A $500,000 home budget gets you about 3,903 sqft in Birmingham vs 653 sqft in San Francisco ($128 vs $766 per sqft).

Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)

CategoryBirmingham, ALSan Francisco, CADifference
Housing $17,376 $39,096 +$21,720
Groceries $4,729 $5,761 +$1,032
Transportation $3,465 $5,125 +$1,660
Utilities $1,884 $3,804 +$1,920
Insurance $2,400 $1,500 −$900
Taxes $9,314 $24,108 +$14,795
Total $39,168 $79,394 +$40,226

Side by side

MetricBirmingham, ALSan Francisco, CA
Cost-of-living index91.8117.6
Unemployment rate4.90%5.22%
Population growth (5-yr)-2.6%1.1%
Air quality (median AQI)5753
Big Mac price (est.)$5.22$6.69
Median home price$262,556$1,149,215
Home price ÷ income3.8×8.9×
1-yr home appreciation2.0%-0.8%
Price per square foot$128$766
Median rent$1,448$3,258
Total tax burden (% income)9.8%13.5%
Combined sales tax9.25%8.82%
Capital gains tax5.00%13.30%
Property tax rate0.50%0.72%
Healthcare (annual)$6,200$7,200
Childcare (annual, infant)$7,000$19,000
Vehicle property tax0.70%0.65%
Avg commute (min)2733
Home insurance / yr$2,400$1,500
Auto insurance / yr$1,900$2,400
Flood insurance / yr$800$750
Earthquake insurance / yr$100$950
Electricity ¢/kWh17.435.3
Gas $/gal2.954.85
Violent crime /100k450500
Avg summer high °F9184
Avg winter low °F3345
Permit difficulty (1–5)25
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