Charlotte, NC vs Birmingham, AL
Moving from Charlotte to Birmingham? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($390,321 → $262,556 median home) and taxes.
Charlotte vs Birmingham 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 Charlotte, NC, you'd need about $94,289 in Birmingham, AL (−$5,711).
Livability — Charlotte, NC: 66 · Birmingham, AL: 71 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 2,561 sqft in Charlotte vs 3,903 sqft in Birmingham ($195 vs $128 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Charlotte, NC | Birmingham, AL | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $20,880 | $17,376 | −$3,504 |
| Groceries | $4,834 | $4,729 | −$105 |
| Transportation | $3,130 | $3,465 | +$335 |
| Utilities | $1,752 | $1,884 | +$132 |
| Insurance | $2,000 | $2,400 | +$400 |
| Taxes | $8,740 | $9,314 | +$574 |
| Total | $41,336 | $39,168 | −$2,168 |
Side by side
| Metric | Charlotte, NC | Birmingham, AL |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 97.3 | 91.8 |
| Unemployment rate | 4.71% | 4.90% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 10.0% | -2.6% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 53 | 57 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.54 | $5.22 |
| Median home price | $390,321 | $262,556 |
| Home price ÷ income | 5.1× | 3.8× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | -0.4% | 2.0% |
| Price per square foot | $195 | $128 |
| Median rent | $1,740 | $1,448 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 9.9% | 9.8% |
| Combined sales tax | 6.98% | 9.25% |
| Capital gains tax | 4.25% | 5.00% |
| Property tax rate | 0.72% | 0.50% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,600 | $6,200 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $10,000 | $7,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | 1.10% | 0.70% |
| Avg commute (min) | 27 | 27 |
| Home insurance / yr | $2,000 | $2,400 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,400 | $1,900 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $800 | $800 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 16.3 | 17.4 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.20 | 2.95 |
| Violent crime /100k | 400 | 450 |
| Avg summer high °F | 89 | 91 |
| Avg winter low °F | 30 | 33 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 3 | 2 |