Lafayette, LA vs Virginia Beach, VA
Moving from Lafayette to Virginia Beach? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($202,312 → $373,678 median home) and taxes.
Lafayette 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 Lafayette, LA, you'd need about $111,615 in Virginia Beach, VA (+$11,615).
Livability — Lafayette, LA: 72 · Virginia Beach, VA: 68 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 4,941 sqft in Lafayette vs 2,677 sqft in Virginia Beach ($101 vs $187 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Lafayette, LA | Virginia Beach, VA | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $16,452 | $22,344 | +$5,892 |
| Groceries | $4,650 | $4,853 | +$203 |
| Transportation | $4,475 | $3,080 | −$1,395 |
| Utilities | $1,560 | $1,872 | +$312 |
| Insurance | $3,500 | $1,500 | −$2,000 |
| Taxes | $8,509 | $10,303 | +$1,794 |
| Total | $39,146 | $43,952 | +$4,805 |
Side by side
| Metric | Lafayette, LA | Virginia Beach, VA |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 87.6 | 97.7 |
| Unemployment rate | 5.97% | 5.24% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | -1.6% | 4.7% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 51 | 41 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $4.98 | $5.56 |
| Median home price | $202,312 | $373,678 |
| Home price ÷ income | 3.5× | 4.8× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 2.1% | 2.5% |
| Price per square foot | $101 | $187 |
| Median rent | $1,371 | $1,862 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 9.1% | 12.5% |
| Combined sales tax | 9.56% | 5.73% |
| Capital gains tax | 4.25% | 5.75% |
| Property tax rate | 0.49% | 0.86% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,600 | $6,800 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $8,000 | $15,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | 0.10% | 3.97% |
| Avg commute (min) | 26 | 25 |
| Home insurance / yr | $3,500 | $1,500 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $2,900 | $1,400 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $1,000 | $700 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 14.4 | 17.4 |
| Gas $/gal | 2.95 | 3.20 |
| Violent crime /100k | 630 | 200 |
| Avg summer high °F | 92 | 87 |
| Avg winter low °F | 43 | 28 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 2 | 3 |