Charlotte, NC vs Knoxville, TN
Moving from Charlotte to Knoxville? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($390,321 → $367,158 median home) and taxes.
Charlotte vs Knoxville 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 $94,771 in Knoxville, TN (−$5,229).
Livability — Charlotte, NC: 66 · Knoxville, TN: 68 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 2,561 sqft in Charlotte vs 2,723 sqft in Knoxville ($195 vs $184 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Charlotte, NC | Knoxville, TN | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $20,880 | $21,144 | +$264 |
| Groceries | $4,834 | $4,715 | −$119 |
| Transportation | $3,130 | $3,130 | +$0 |
| Utilities | $1,752 | $1,608 | −$144 |
| Insurance | $2,000 | $2,200 | +$200 |
| Taxes | $8,740 | $4,576 | −$4,164 |
| Total | $41,336 | $37,372 | −$3,964 |
Side by side
| Metric | Charlotte, NC | Knoxville, TN |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 97.3 | 92.2 |
| Unemployment rate | 4.71% | 4.24% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 10.0% | 2.5% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 53 | 52 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.54 | $5.25 |
| Median home price | $390,321 | $367,158 |
| Home price ÷ income | 5.1× | 5.5× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | -0.4% | 1.8% |
| Price per square foot | $195 | $184 |
| Median rent | $1,740 | $1,762 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 9.9% | 7.6% |
| Combined sales tax | 6.98% | 9.55% |
| Capital gains tax | 4.25% | None |
| Property tax rate | 0.72% | 0.53% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,600 | $6,300 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $10,000 | $9,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | 1.10% | None |
| Avg commute (min) | 27 | 24 |
| Home insurance / yr | $2,000 | $2,200 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,400 | $1,600 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $800 | $700 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $350 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 16.3 | 14.9 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.20 | 2.95 |
| Violent crime /100k | 400 | 600 |
| Avg summer high °F | 89 | 89 |
| Avg winter low °F | 30 | 30 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 3 | 2 |