Chicago, IL vs Augusta, GA
Moving from Chicago to Augusta? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($353,998 → $253,524 median home) and taxes.
Chicago vs Augusta 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 Chicago, IL, you'd need about $89,031 in Augusta, GA (−$10,969).
Livability — Chicago, IL: 63 · Augusta, GA: 72 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 2,402 sqft in Chicago vs 4,042 sqft in Augusta ($208 vs $124 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Chicago, IL | Augusta, GA | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $27,192 | $17,748 | −$9,444 |
| Groceries | $5,215 | $4,809 | −$406 |
| Transportation | $3,550 | $3,515 | −$35 |
| Utilities | $2,208 | $1,656 | −$552 |
| Insurance | $1,900 | $2,100 | +$200 |
| Taxes | $14,141 | $9,236 | −$4,905 |
| Total | $54,206 | $39,064 | −$15,142 |
Side by side
| Metric | Chicago, IL | Augusta, GA |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 102.5 | 91.2 |
| Unemployment rate | 6.19% | 6.45% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 0.2% | 4.0% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 42 | 42 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.83 | $5.19 |
| Median home price | $353,998 | $253,524 |
| Home price ÷ income | 4.2× | 4.0× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 4.4% | 2.8% |
| Price per square foot | $208 | $124 |
| Median rent | $2,266 | $1,479 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 12.9% | 8.9% |
| Combined sales tax | 8.86% | 7.38% |
| Capital gains tax | 4.95% | 5.39% |
| Property tax rate | 2.11% | 0.68% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,800 | $6,400 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $14,000 | $9,500 |
| Vehicle property tax | None | None |
| Avg commute (min) | 31 | 24 |
| Home insurance / yr | $1,900 | $2,100 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,600 | $1,900 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $700 | $700 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $300 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 20.5 | 15.4 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.60 | 3.15 |
| Natural gas / mo | $82 | $74 |
| Water & sewer / mo | $57 | $123 |
| Home internet / mo | $77 | $88 |
| Violent crime /100k | 430 | 370 |
| Avg summer high °F | 85 | 89 |
| Avg winter low °F | 15 | 34 |
| Annual precipitation (in) | 40.9 | 50.4 |
| Annual snowfall (in) | 38.8 | 2.2 |
| Sunshine (% possible) | 54% | 60% |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 4 | 2 |