Durham, NC vs Dallas, TX
Moving from Durham to Dallas? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($414,340 → $366,823 median home) and taxes.
Durham vs Dallas 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 Durham, NC, you'd need about $105,283 in Dallas, TX (+$5,283).
Livability — Durham, NC: 65 · Dallas, TX: 67 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 2,413 sqft in Durham vs 2,862 sqft in Dallas ($207 vs $175 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Durham, NC | Dallas, TX | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $20,436 | $20,136 | −$300 |
| Groceries | $4,840 | $5,182 | +$342 |
| Transportation | $3,130 | $3,675 | +$545 |
| Utilities | $1,752 | $1,836 | +$84 |
| Insurance | $2,000 | $3,600 | +$1,600 |
| Taxes | $9,397 | $8,136 | −$1,261 |
| Total | $41,555 | $42,565 | +$1,010 |
Side by side
| Metric | Durham, NC | Dallas, TX |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 97.3 | 102.5 |
| Unemployment rate | 4.03% | 4.62% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 17.8% | 8.0% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 51 | 59 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.54 | $5.83 |
| Median home price | $414,340 | $366,823 |
| Home price ÷ income | 5.4× | 4.4× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | -1.9% | -3.3% |
| Price per square foot | $207 | $175 |
| Median rent | $1,703 | $1,678 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 9.9% | 8.6% |
| Combined sales tax | 6.98% | 8.20% |
| Capital gains tax | 4.25% | None |
| Property tax rate | 0.87% | 1.76% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,600 | $6,800 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $10,000 | $9,500 |
| Vehicle property tax | 1.10% | None |
| Avg commute (min) | 25 | 28 |
| Home insurance / yr | $2,000 | $3,600 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,400 | $2,100 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $800 | $900 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 16.3 | 17.0 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.20 | 3.00 |
| Violent crime /100k | 400 | 430 |
| Avg summer high °F | 89 | 96 |
| Avg winter low °F | 30 | 38 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 3 | 2 |