Charlotte, NC vs Davenport, IA
Moving from Charlotte to Davenport? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($390,321 → $195,380 median home) and taxes.
Charlotte vs Davenport 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 $91,616 in Davenport, IA (−$8,384).
Livability — Charlotte, NC: 66 · Davenport, IA: 73 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 2,561 sqft in Charlotte vs 4,223 sqft in Davenport ($195 vs $118 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Charlotte, NC | Davenport, IA | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $20,880 | $12,252 | −$8,628 |
| Groceries | $4,834 | $4,814 | −$20 |
| Transportation | $3,130 | $3,150 | +$20 |
| Utilities | $1,752 | $1,500 | −$252 |
| Insurance | $2,000 | $1,700 | −$300 |
| Taxes | $8,740 | $9,346 | +$606 |
| Total | $41,336 | $32,762 | −$8,574 |
Side by side
| Metric | Charlotte, NC | Davenport, IA |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 97.3 | 89.2 |
| Unemployment rate | 4.71% | 4.82% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 10.0% | -0.0% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 53 | 46 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.54 | $5.07 |
| Median home price | $390,321 | $195,380 |
| Home price ÷ income | 5.1× | 2.9× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | -0.4% | 4.9% |
| Price per square foot | $195 | $118 |
| Median rent | $1,740 | $1,021 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 9.9% | 11.2% |
| Combined sales tax | 6.98% | 6.94% |
| Capital gains tax | 4.25% | 3.80% |
| Property tax rate | 0.72% | 1.93% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,600 | $6,400 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $10,000 | $11,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | 1.10% | 1.00% |
| Avg commute (min) | 27 | 21 |
| Home insurance / yr | $2,000 | $1,700 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,400 | $1,200 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $800 | $700 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 16.3 | 13.9 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.20 | 3.10 |
| Violent crime /100k | 400 | 300 |
| Avg summer high °F | 89 | 85 |
| Avg winter low °F | 30 | 12 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 3 | 2 |