Cleveland, OH vs Richmond, VA
Moving from Cleveland to Richmond? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($252,210 → $397,705 median home) and taxes.
Cleveland vs Richmond 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 $107,590 in Richmond, VA (+$7,590).
Livability — Cleveland, OH: 71 · Richmond, VA: 66 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 3,270 sqft in Cleveland vs 2,514 sqft in Richmond ($153 vs $199 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Cleveland, OH | Richmond, VA | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $17,532 | $21,156 | +$3,624 |
| Groceries | $4,830 | $4,853 | +$23 |
| Transportation | $3,025 | $3,080 | +$55 |
| Utilities | $2,100 | $1,872 | −$228 |
| Insurance | $1,300 | $1,500 | +$200 |
| Taxes | $9,518 | $10,041 | +$523 |
| Total | $38,305 | $42,502 | +$4,197 |
Side by side
| Metric | Cleveland, OH | Richmond, VA |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 91.4 | 98.3 |
| Unemployment rate | 5.88% | 4.78% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 0.8% | 3.6% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 42 | 42 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.20 | $5.60 |
| Median home price | $252,210 | $397,705 |
| Home price ÷ income | 3.8× | 4.9× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 4.3% | 2.3% |
| Price per square foot | $153 | $199 |
| Median rent | $1,461 | $1,763 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 10.0% | 12.5% |
| Combined sales tax | 7.24% | 5.73% |
| Capital gains tax | 3.50% | 5.75% |
| Property tax rate | 1.84% | 0.76% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,400 | $6,800 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $10,000 | $15,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | None | 3.97% |
| Avg commute (min) | 25 | 25 |
| Home insurance / yr | $1,300 | $1,500 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,300 | $1,400 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $600 | $700 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 19.5 | 17.4 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.25 | 3.20 |
| Natural gas / mo | $78 | $78 |
| Water & sewer / mo | $104 | $103 |
| Home internet / mo | $76 | $77 |
| Violent crime /100k | 300 | 200 |
| Avg summer high °F | 85 | 87 |
| Avg winter low °F | 20 | 28 |
| Annual precipitation (in) | 41.0 | 45.5 |
| Annual snowfall (in) | 63.8 | 8.8 |
| Sunshine (% possible) | 49% | 57% |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 2 | 3 |