Cleveland, OH vs Birmingham, AL
Moving from Cleveland to Birmingham? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($252,210 → $262,556 median home) and taxes.
Cleveland vs Birmingham 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 Cleveland, OH, you'd need about $100,399 in Birmingham, AL (+$399).
Livability — Cleveland, OH: 71 · Birmingham, AL: 71 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 3,270 sqft in Cleveland vs 3,903 sqft in Birmingham ($153 vs $128 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Cleveland, OH | Birmingham, AL | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $17,532 | $17,376 | −$156 |
| Groceries | $4,830 | $4,729 | −$101 |
| Transportation | $3,025 | $3,465 | +$440 |
| Utilities | $2,100 | $1,884 | −$216 |
| Insurance | $1,300 | $2,400 | +$1,100 |
| Taxes | $9,518 | $9,314 | −$204 |
| Total | $38,305 | $39,168 | +$863 |
Side by side
| Metric | Cleveland, OH | Birmingham, AL |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 91.4 | 91.8 |
| Unemployment rate | 5.88% | 4.90% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 0.8% | -2.6% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 55 | 57 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.20 | $5.22 |
| Median home price | $252,210 | $262,556 |
| Home price ÷ income | 3.8× | 3.8× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 4.3% | 2.0% |
| Price per square foot | $153 | $128 |
| Median rent | $1,461 | $1,448 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 10.0% | 9.8% |
| Combined sales tax | 7.24% | 9.25% |
| Capital gains tax | 3.50% | 5.00% |
| Property tax rate | 1.84% | 0.50% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,400 | $6,200 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $10,000 | $7,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | None | 0.70% |
| Avg commute (min) | 25 | 27 |
| Home insurance / yr | $1,300 | $2,400 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,300 | $1,900 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $600 | $800 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 19.5 | 17.4 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.25 | 2.95 |
| Violent crime /100k | 300 | 450 |
| Avg summer high °F | 85 | 91 |
| Avg winter low °F | 20 | 33 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 2 | 2 |