Montgomery, AL vs Tampa, FL
Moving from Montgomery to Tampa? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($214,099 → $360,738 median home) and taxes.
Montgomery vs Tampa 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 Montgomery, AL, you'd need about $113,939 in Tampa, FL (+$13,939).
Livability — Montgomery, AL: 73 · Tampa, FL: 65 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 4,789 sqft in Montgomery vs 2,564 sqft in Tampa ($104 vs $195 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Montgomery, AL | Tampa, FL | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $16,824 | $24,216 | +$7,392 |
| Groceries | $4,729 | $4,949 | +$219 |
| Transportation | $3,465 | $4,800 | +$1,335 |
| Utilities | $1,884 | $1,656 | −$228 |
| Insurance | $2,400 | $4,200 | +$1,800 |
| Taxes | $8,784 | $4,642 | −$4,141 |
| Total | $38,086 | $44,463 | +$6,377 |
Side by side
| Metric | Montgomery, AL | Tampa, FL |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 89.9 | 102.5 |
| Unemployment rate | 5.56% | 4.92% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 3.0% | 7.3% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 42 | 51 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.12 | $5.83 |
| Median home price | $214,099 | $360,738 |
| Home price ÷ income | 3.5× | 5.4× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 3.7% | -3.4% |
| Price per square foot | $104 | $195 |
| Median rent | $1,402 | $2,018 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 9.8% | 9.1% |
| Combined sales tax | 9.25% | 7.02% |
| Capital gains tax | 5.00% | None |
| Property tax rate | 0.32% | 0.80% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,200 | $7,500 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $7,000 | $10,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | 0.70% | None |
| Avg commute (min) | 24 | 28 |
| Home insurance / yr | $2,400 | $4,200 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,900 | $2,900 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $800 | $1,400 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 17.4 | 15.4 |
| Gas $/gal | 2.95 | 3.35 |
| Violent crime /100k | 450 | 380 |
| Avg summer high °F | 91 | 91 |
| Avg winter low °F | 33 | 52 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 2 | 3 |