Kennewick, WA vs Virginia Beach, VA
Moving from Kennewick to Virginia Beach? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($441,524 → $373,678 median home) and taxes.
Kennewick 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 Kennewick, WA, you'd need about $98,824 in Virginia Beach, VA (−$1,176).
Livability — Kennewick, WA: 61 · Virginia Beach, VA: 68 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 2,038 sqft in Kennewick vs 2,677 sqft in Virginia Beach ($245 vs $187 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Kennewick, WA | Virginia Beach, VA | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $20,556 | $22,344 | +$1,788 |
| Groceries | $5,246 | $4,853 | −$393 |
| Transportation | $4,075 | $3,080 | −$995 |
| Utilities | $1,548 | $1,872 | +$324 |
| Insurance | $1,500 | $1,500 | +$0 |
| Taxes | $6,004 | $10,303 | +$4,299 |
| Total | $38,929 | $43,952 | +$5,023 |
Side by side
| Metric | Kennewick, WA | Virginia Beach, VA |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 98.9 | 97.7 |
| Unemployment rate | 5.10% | 5.24% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 8.8% | 4.7% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 36 | 41 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.63 | $5.56 |
| Median home price | $441,524 | $373,678 |
| Home price ÷ income | 5.4× | 4.8× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 0.0% | 2.5% |
| Price per square foot | $245 | $187 |
| Median rent | $1,713 | $1,862 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 10.7% | 12.5% |
| Combined sales tax | 9.38% | 5.73% |
| Capital gains tax | 7.00% | 5.75% |
| Property tax rate | 0.82% | 0.86% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,600 | $6,800 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $16,000 | $15,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | None | 3.97% |
| Avg commute (min) | 22 | 25 |
| Home insurance / yr | $1,500 | $1,500 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,600 | $1,400 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $700 | $700 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $700 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 14.4 | 17.4 |
| Gas $/gal | 4.55 | 3.20 |
| Violent crime /100k | 375 | 200 |
| Avg summer high °F | 76 | 87 |
| Avg winter low °F | 37 | 28 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 5 | 3 |