Chicago, IL vs Hickory, NC
Moving from Chicago to Hickory? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($353,998 → $271,739 median home) and taxes.
Chicago vs Hickory 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 $87,206 in Hickory, NC (−$12,794).
Livability — Chicago, IL: 63 · Hickory, NC: 73 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 2,402 sqft in Chicago vs 3,679 sqft in Hickory ($208 vs $136 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Chicago, IL | Hickory, NC | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $27,192 | $17,952 | −$9,240 |
| Groceries | $5,215 | $4,840 | −$376 |
| Transportation | $3,550 | $3,130 | −$420 |
| Utilities | $2,208 | $1,752 | −$456 |
| Insurance | $1,900 | $2,000 | +$100 |
| Taxes | $14,141 | $7,879 | −$6,262 |
| Total | $54,206 | $37,553 | −$16,654 |
Side by side
| Metric | Chicago, IL | Hickory, NC |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 102.5 | 89.4 |
| Unemployment rate | 6.19% | 5.52% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 0.2% | 0.5% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 56 | 46 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.83 | $5.09 |
| Median home price | $353,998 | $271,739 |
| Home price ÷ income | 4.2× | 4.7× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 4.4% | 2.3% |
| Price per square foot | $208 | $136 |
| Median rent | $2,266 | $1,496 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 12.9% | 9.9% |
| Combined sales tax | 8.86% | 6.98% |
| Capital gains tax | 4.95% | 4.25% |
| Property tax rate | 2.11% | 0.69% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,800 | $6,600 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $14,000 | $10,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | None | 1.10% |
| Avg commute (min) | 31 | 24 |
| Home insurance / yr | $1,900 | $2,000 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,600 | $1,400 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $700 | $800 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $300 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 20.5 | 16.3 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.60 | 3.20 |
| Violent crime /100k | 430 | 400 |
| Avg summer high °F | 85 | 89 |
| Avg winter low °F | 15 | 30 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 4 | 3 |