Fayetteville, AR vs Washington, DC
Moving from Fayetteville to Washington? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($368,497 → $583,013 median home) and taxes.
Fayetteville vs Washington 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 Fayetteville, AR, you'd need about $119,785 in Washington, DC (+$19,785).
Livability — Fayetteville, AR: 66 · Washington, DC: 39 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 2,714 sqft in Fayetteville vs 1,286 sqft in Washington ($184 vs $389 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Fayetteville, AR | Washington, DC | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $19,128 | $28,992 | +$9,864 |
| Groceries | $4,655 | $5,318 | +$663 |
| Transportation | $3,405 | $3,855 | +$450 |
| Utilities | $1,524 | $2,748 | +$1,224 |
| Insurance | $2,800 | $1,400 | −$1,400 |
| Taxes | $8,682 | $17,710 | +$9,029 |
| Total | $40,193 | $60,023 | +$19,829 |
Side by side
| Metric | Fayetteville, AR | Washington, DC |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 91.5 | 109.5 |
| Unemployment rate | 3.55% | 4.87% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 7.1% | 4.2% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 42 | 42 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.20 | $6.23 |
| Median home price | $368,497 | $583,013 |
| Home price ÷ income | 5.0× | 4.9× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 3.1% | -0.5% |
| Price per square foot | $184 | $389 |
| Median rent | $1,594 | $2,416 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 10.2% | 12.0% |
| Combined sales tax | 9.47% | 6.00% |
| Capital gains tax | 3.90% | 10.75% |
| Property tax rate | 0.60% | 0.95% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,000 | $7,800 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $7,500 | $26,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | 1.02% | None |
| Avg commute (min) | 21 | 34 |
| Home insurance / yr | $2,800 | $1,400 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,900 | $2,000 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $750 | $800 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $350 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 14.2 | 25.4 |
| Gas $/gal | 2.95 | 3.40 |
| Natural gas / mo | $62 | $80 |
| Water & sewer / mo | $62 | $271 |
| Home internet / mo | $78 | $81 |
| Violent crime /100k | 640 | 1,000 |
| Avg summer high °F | 93 | 88 |
| Avg winter low °F | 30 | 29 |
| Annual precipitation (in) | 49.0 | 41.8 |
| Annual snowfall (in) | 8.0 | 13.7 |
| Sunshine (% possible) | 60% | 56% |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 2 | 4 |