Charleston, WV vs Columbus, OH
Moving from Charleston to Columbus? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($148,817 → $333,537 median home) and taxes.
Charleston vs Columbus 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 $106,257 in Columbus, OH (+$6,257).
Livability — Charleston, WV: 77 · Columbus, OH: 69 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 5,714 sqft in Charleston vs 2,474 sqft in Columbus ($88 vs $202 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Charleston, WV | Columbus, OH | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $15,180 | $18,288 | +$3,108 |
| Groceries | $4,767 | $4,706 | −$61 |
| Transportation | $3,410 | $3,025 | −$385 |
| Utilities | $1,740 | $2,100 | +$360 |
| Insurance | $1,300 | $1,300 | +$0 |
| Taxes | $8,230 | $9,711 | +$1,482 |
| Total | $34,627 | $39,130 | +$4,504 |
Side by side
| Metric | Charleston, WV | Columbus, OH |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 89.1 | 94.6 |
| Unemployment rate | 5.76% | 4.20% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 17.3% | 5.6% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 42 | 42 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.07 | $5.38 |
| Median home price | $148,817 | $333,537 |
| Home price ÷ income | 2.7× | 4.4× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 0.0% | 1.2% |
| Price per square foot | $88 | $202 |
| Median rent | $1,265 | $1,524 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 9.8% | 10.0% |
| Combined sales tax | 6.55% | 7.24% |
| Capital gains tax | 5.12% | 3.50% |
| Property tax rate | 0.65% | 1.46% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $7,200 | $6,400 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $9,000 | $10,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | 1.66% | None |
| Avg commute (min) | 25 | 24 |
| Home insurance / yr | $1,300 | $1,300 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,700 | $1,300 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $650 | $600 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 16.1 | 19.5 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.30 | 3.25 |
| Natural gas / mo | $68 | $78 |
| Water & sewer / mo | $253 | $104 |
| Home internet / mo | $73 | $76 |
| Violent crime /100k | 280 | 300 |
| Avg summer high °F | 84 | 85 |
| Avg winter low °F | 26 | 20 |
| Annual precipitation (in) | 45.5 | 41.6 |
| Annual snowfall (in) | 12.0 | 28.2 |
| Sunshine (% possible) | 55% | 50% |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 2 | 2 |