Charlotte, NC vs Fort Wayne, IN
Moving from Charlotte to Fort Wayne? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($390,321 → $259,816 median home) and taxes.
Charlotte vs Fort Wayne 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 $92,217 in Fort Wayne, IN (−$7,783).
Livability — Charlotte, NC: 66 · Fort Wayne, IN: 72 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 2,561 sqft in Charlotte vs 3,658 sqft in Fort Wayne ($195 vs $137 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Charlotte, NC | Fort Wayne, IN | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $20,880 | $15,168 | −$5,712 |
| Groceries | $4,834 | $4,740 | −$94 |
| Transportation | $3,130 | $3,250 | +$120 |
| Utilities | $1,752 | $1,932 | +$180 |
| Insurance | $2,000 | $1,600 | −$400 |
| Taxes | $8,740 | $6,922 | −$1,818 |
| Total | $41,336 | $33,612 | −$7,724 |
Side by side
| Metric | Charlotte, NC | Fort Wayne, IN |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 97.3 | 89.7 |
| Unemployment rate | 4.71% | 4.76% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 10.0% | -2.2% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 42 | 42 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.54 | $5.11 |
| Median home price | $390,321 | $259,816 |
| Home price ÷ income | 5.1× | 3.9× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | -0.4% | 2.9% |
| Price per square foot | $195 | $137 |
| Median rent | $1,740 | $1,264 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 9.9% | 9.3% |
| Combined sales tax | 6.98% | 7.00% |
| Capital gains tax | 4.25% | 3.05% |
| Property tax rate | 0.72% | 0.81% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,600 | $6,600 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $10,000 | $12,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | 1.10% | 1.20% |
| Avg commute (min) | 27 | 22 |
| Home insurance / yr | $2,000 | $1,600 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,400 | $1,400 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $800 | $600 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 16.3 | 17.9 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.20 | 3.30 |
| Natural gas / mo | $62 | $72 |
| Water & sewer / mo | $78 | $102 |
| Home internet / mo | $80 | $81 |
| Violent crime /100k | 400 | 360 |
| Avg summer high °F | 89 | 86 |
| Avg winter low °F | 30 | 20 |
| Annual precipitation (in) | 43.6 | 43.6 |
| Annual snowfall (in) | 3.5 | 25.5 |
| Sunshine (% possible) | 62% | 55% |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 3 | 2 |