Harrisburg, PA vs Virginia Beach, VA
Moving from Harrisburg to Virginia Beach? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($312,126 → $373,678 median home) and taxes.
Harrisburg vs Virginia Beach 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 Harrisburg, PA, you'd need about $100,770 in Virginia Beach, VA (+$770).
Livability — Harrisburg, PA: 65 · Virginia Beach, VA: 68 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 2,803 sqft in Harrisburg vs 2,677 sqft in Virginia Beach ($178 vs $187 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Harrisburg, PA | Virginia Beach, VA | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $17,844 | $22,344 | +$4,500 |
| Groceries | $4,915 | $4,853 | −$62 |
| Transportation | $3,440 | $3,080 | −$360 |
| Utilities | $2,316 | $1,872 | −$444 |
| Insurance | $1,200 | $1,500 | +$300 |
| Taxes | $8,331 | $10,303 | +$1,972 |
| Total | $38,046 | $43,952 | +$5,906 |
Side by side
| Metric | Harrisburg, PA | Virginia Beach, VA |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 97.0 | 97.7 |
| Unemployment rate | 3.97% | 5.24% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 5.0% | 4.7% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 48 | 41 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.52 | $5.56 |
| Median home price | $312,126 | $373,678 |
| Home price ÷ income | 4.1× | 4.8× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 3.5% | 2.5% |
| Price per square foot | $178 | $187 |
| Median rent | $1,487 | $1,862 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 10.6% | 12.5% |
| Combined sales tax | 6.34% | 5.73% |
| Capital gains tax | 3.07% | 5.75% |
| Property tax rate | 1.35% | 0.86% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $7,000 | $6,800 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $12,000 | $15,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | None | 3.97% |
| Avg commute (min) | 23 | 25 |
| Home insurance / yr | $1,200 | $1,500 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,600 | $1,400 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $650 | $700 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 21.5 | 17.4 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.55 | 3.20 |
| Violent crime /100k | 390 | 200 |
| Avg summer high °F | 85 | 87 |
| Avg winter low °F | 22 | 28 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 3 | 3 |