Charleston, WV vs Austin, TX
Moving from Charleston to Austin? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($148,817 → $428,524 median home) and taxes.
Charleston vs Austin 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 Charleston, WV, you'd need about $110,351 in Austin, TX (+$10,351).
Livability — Charleston, WV: 77 · Austin, TX: 70 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 5,714 sqft in Charleston vs 2,450 sqft in Austin ($88 vs $204 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Charleston, WV | Austin, TX | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $15,180 | $19,620 | +$4,440 |
| Groceries | $4,767 | $4,647 | −$120 |
| Transportation | $3,410 | $3,675 | +$265 |
| Utilities | $1,740 | $1,836 | +$96 |
| Insurance | $1,300 | $3,600 | +$2,300 |
| Taxes | $8,230 | $9,558 | +$1,329 |
| Total | $34,627 | $42,936 | +$8,309 |
Side by side
| Metric | Charleston, WV | Austin, TX |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 89.1 | 98.3 |
| Unemployment rate | 5.76% | 4.30% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 17.3% | 14.8% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 40 | 52 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.07 | $5.59 |
| Median home price | $148,817 | $428,524 |
| Home price ÷ income | 2.7× | 4.6× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 0.0% | -6.0% |
| Price per square foot | $88 | $204 |
| Median rent | $1,265 | $1,635 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 9.8% | 8.6% |
| Combined sales tax | 6.55% | 8.20% |
| Capital gains tax | 5.12% | None |
| Property tax rate | 0.65% | 1.71% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $7,200 | $6,800 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $9,000 | $9,500 |
| Vehicle property tax | 1.66% | None |
| Avg commute (min) | 25 | 27 |
| Home insurance / yr | $1,300 | $3,600 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,700 | $2,100 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $650 | $900 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 16.1 | 17.0 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.30 | 3.00 |
| Violent crime /100k | 280 | 430 |
| Avg summer high °F | 84 | 96 |
| Avg winter low °F | 26 | 38 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 2 | 2 |