Miami, FL vs Virginia Beach, VA
Moving from Miami to Virginia Beach? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($475,622 → $373,678 median home) and taxes.
Miami 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 Miami, FL, you'd need about $87,183 in Virginia Beach, VA (−$12,817).
Livability — Miami, FL: 57 · Virginia Beach, VA: 68 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 1,945 sqft in Miami vs 2,677 sqft in Virginia Beach ($257 vs $187 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Miami, FL | Virginia Beach, VA | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $32,316 | $22,344 | −$9,972 |
| Groceries | $5,091 | $4,853 | −$238 |
| Transportation | $4,800 | $3,080 | −$1,720 |
| Utilities | $1,656 | $1,872 | +$216 |
| Insurance | $4,200 | $1,500 | −$2,700 |
| Taxes | $5,772 | $10,303 | +$4,531 |
| Total | $53,835 | $43,952 | −$9,884 |
Side by side
| Metric | Miami, FL | Virginia Beach, VA |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 112.1 | 97.7 |
| Unemployment rate | 5.24% | 5.24% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 1.7% | 4.7% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 51 | 41 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $6.38 | $5.56 |
| Median home price | $475,622 | $373,678 |
| Home price ÷ income | 6.9× | 4.8× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | -2.9% | 2.5% |
| Price per square foot | $257 | $187 |
| Median rent | $2,693 | $1,862 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 9.1% | 12.5% |
| Combined sales tax | 7.02% | 5.73% |
| Capital gains tax | None | 5.75% |
| Property tax rate | 0.90% | 0.86% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $7,500 | $6,800 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $10,000 | $15,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | None | 3.97% |
| Avg commute (min) | 30 | 25 |
| Home insurance / yr | $4,200 | $1,500 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $2,900 | $1,400 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $1,400 | $700 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 15.4 | 17.4 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.35 | 3.20 |
| Violent crime /100k | 380 | 200 |
| Avg summer high °F | 91 | 87 |
| Avg winter low °F | 52 | 28 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 3 | 3 |