Orlando, FL vs Charleston, WV
Moving from Orlando to Charleston? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($387,733 → $148,817 median home) and taxes.
Orlando vs Charleston 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 Orlando, FL, you'd need about $87,664 in Charleston, WV (−$12,336).
Livability — Orlando, FL: 66 · Charleston, WV: 77 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 2,385 sqft in Orlando vs 5,714 sqft in Charleston ($210 vs $88 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Orlando, FL | Charleston, WV | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $23,724 | $15,180 | −$8,544 |
| Groceries | $4,813 | $4,767 | −$46 |
| Transportation | $4,800 | $3,410 | −$1,390 |
| Utilities | $1,656 | $1,740 | +$84 |
| Insurance | $4,200 | $1,300 | −$2,900 |
| Taxes | $4,915 | $8,230 | +$3,315 |
| Total | $44,108 | $34,627 | −$9,482 |
Side by side
| Metric | Orlando, FL | Charleston, WV |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 101.6 | 89.1 |
| Unemployment rate | 5.26% | 5.76% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 12.1% | 17.3% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 42 | 42 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.78 | $5.07 |
| Median home price | $387,733 | $148,817 |
| Home price ÷ income | 5.4× | 2.7× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | -3.1% | 0.0% |
| Price per square foot | $210 | $88 |
| Median rent | $1,977 | $1,265 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 9.1% | 9.8% |
| Combined sales tax | 7.02% | 6.55% |
| Capital gains tax | None | 5.12% |
| Property tax rate | 0.80% | 0.65% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $7,500 | $7,200 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $10,000 | $9,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | None | 1.66% |
| Avg commute (min) | 29 | 25 |
| Home insurance / yr | $4,200 | $1,300 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $2,900 | $1,700 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $1,400 | $650 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 15.4 | 16.1 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.35 | 3.30 |
| Natural gas / mo | $38 | $68 |
| Water & sewer / mo | $88 | $253 |
| Home internet / mo | $76 | $73 |
| Violent crime /100k | 380 | 280 |
| Avg summer high °F | 91 | 84 |
| Avg winter low °F | 52 | 26 |
| Annual precipitation (in) | 51.5 | 45.5 |
| Annual snowfall (in) | 0.0 | 12.0 |
| Sunshine (% possible) | 56% | 55% |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 3 | 2 |