Jacksonville, FL vs Lancaster, PA
Moving from Jacksonville to Lancaster? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($352,994 → $388,207 median home) and taxes.
Jacksonville vs Lancaster 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 Jacksonville, FL, you'd need about $97,099 in Lancaster, PA (−$2,901).
Livability — Jacksonville, FL: 69 · Lancaster, PA: 64 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 2,621 sqft in Jacksonville vs 2,254 sqft in Lancaster ($191 vs $222 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Jacksonville, FL | Lancaster, PA | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $20,412 | $18,312 | −$2,100 |
| Groceries | $4,813 | $4,915 | +$102 |
| Transportation | $4,800 | $3,440 | −$1,360 |
| Utilities | $1,656 | $2,316 | +$660 |
| Insurance | $4,200 | $1,200 | −$3,000 |
| Taxes | $4,713 | $9,202 | +$4,489 |
| Total | $40,594 | $39,385 | −$1,209 |
Side by side
| Metric | Jacksonville, FL | Lancaster, PA |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 99.6 | 96.8 |
| Unemployment rate | 4.54% | 3.38% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 11.4% | 3.1% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 42 | 42 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.67 | $5.51 |
| Median home price | $352,994 | $388,207 |
| Home price ÷ income | 4.8× | 4.8× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | -1.7% | 4.6% |
| Price per square foot | $191 | $222 |
| Median rent | $1,701 | $1,526 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 9.1% | 10.6% |
| Combined sales tax | 7.02% | 6.34% |
| Capital gains tax | None | 3.07% |
| Property tax rate | 0.80% | 1.48% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $7,500 | $7,000 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $10,000 | $12,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | None | None |
| Avg commute (min) | 26 | 24 |
| Home insurance / yr | $4,200 | $1,200 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $2,900 | $1,600 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $1,400 | $650 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 15.4 | 21.5 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.35 | 3.55 |
| Natural gas / mo | $38 | $82 |
| Water & sewer / mo | $88 | $65 |
| Home internet / mo | $76 | $78 |
| Violent crime /100k | 380 | 390 |
| Avg summer high °F | 91 | 85 |
| Avg winter low °F | 52 | 22 |
| Annual precipitation (in) | 47.6 | 44.1 |
| Annual snowfall (in) | 0.0 | 23.1 |
| Sunshine (% possible) | 63% | 56% |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 3 | 3 |