Jackson, MS vs Charlotte, NC
Moving from Jackson to Charlotte? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($215,136 → $390,321 median home) and taxes.
Jackson vs Charlotte 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 Jackson, MS, you'd need about $108,333 in Charlotte, NC (+$8,333).
Livability — Jackson, MS: 76 · Charlotte, NC: 66 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 4,766 sqft in Jackson vs 2,561 sqft in Charlotte ($105 vs $195 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Jackson, MS | Charlotte, NC | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $17,400 | $20,880 | +$3,480 |
| Groceries | $4,722 | $4,834 | +$112 |
| Transportation | $3,410 | $3,130 | −$280 |
| Utilities | $1,812 | $1,752 | −$60 |
| Insurance | $3,100 | $2,000 | −$1,100 |
| Taxes | $8,536 | $8,740 | +$205 |
| Total | $38,980 | $41,336 | +$2,356 |
Side by side
| Metric | Jackson, MS | Charlotte, NC |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 89.8 | 97.3 |
| Unemployment rate | 6.03% | 4.71% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 2.2% | 10.0% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 42 | 42 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.11 | $5.54 |
| Median home price | $215,136 | $390,321 |
| Home price ÷ income | 3.6× | 5.1× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 2.4% | -0.4% |
| Price per square foot | $105 | $195 |
| Median rent | $1,450 | $1,740 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 9.8% | 9.9% |
| Combined sales tax | 7.07% | 6.98% |
| Capital gains tax | 4.70% | 4.25% |
| Property tax rate | 0.77% | 0.72% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,300 | $6,600 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $6,000 | $10,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | 3.42% | 1.10% |
| Avg commute (min) | 25 | 27 |
| Home insurance / yr | $3,100 | $2,000 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,900 | $1,400 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $900 | $800 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 16.8 | 16.3 |
| Gas $/gal | 2.90 | 3.20 |
| Natural gas / mo | $58 | $62 |
| Water & sewer / mo | $93 | $78 |
| Home internet / mo | $75 | $80 |
| Violent crime /100k | 280 | 400 |
| Avg summer high °F | 92 | 89 |
| Avg winter low °F | 38 | 30 |
| Annual precipitation (in) | 54.9 | 43.6 |
| Annual snowfall (in) | 2.7 | 3.5 |
| Sunshine (% possible) | 64% | 62% |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 2 | 3 |