Nashville, TN vs Ocala, FL
Moving from Nashville to Ocala? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($455,958 → $273,318 median home) and taxes.
Nashville vs Ocala 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 Nashville, TN, you'd need about $98,738 in Ocala, FL (−$1,262).
Livability — Nashville, TN: 63 · Ocala, FL: 70 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 2,193 sqft in Nashville vs 3,385 sqft in Ocala ($228 vs $148 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Nashville, TN | Ocala, FL | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $21,576 | $19,380 | −$2,196 |
| Groceries | $4,715 | $4,813 | +$99 |
| Transportation | $3,130 | $4,800 | +$1,670 |
| Utilities | $1,608 | $1,656 | +$48 |
| Insurance | $2,200 | $4,200 | +$2,000 |
| Taxes | $5,231 | $4,004 | −$1,226 |
| Total | $38,459 | $38,853 | +$394 |
Side by side
| Metric | Nashville, TN | Ocala, FL |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 97.0 | 95.8 |
| Unemployment rate | 3.80% | 5.87% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 8.8% | 10.0% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 51 | 49 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.52 | $5.45 |
| Median home price | $455,958 | $273,318 |
| Home price ÷ income | 5.8× | 4.9× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | -0.9% | -2.6% |
| Price per square foot | $228 | $148 |
| Median rent | $1,798 | $1,615 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 7.6% | 9.1% |
| Combined sales tax | 9.55% | 7.02% |
| Capital gains tax | None | None |
| Property tax rate | 0.55% | 0.79% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,300 | $7,500 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $9,000 | $10,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | None | None |
| Avg commute (min) | 28 | 26 |
| Home insurance / yr | $2,200 | $4,200 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,600 | $2,900 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $700 | $1,400 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $350 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 14.9 | 15.4 |
| Gas $/gal | 2.95 | 3.35 |
| Violent crime /100k | 600 | 380 |
| Avg summer high °F | 89 | 91 |
| Avg winter low °F | 30 | 52 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 2 | 3 |