Orlando, FL vs Madison, WI
Moving from Orlando to Madison? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($387,733 → $452,769 median home) and taxes.
Orlando vs Madison 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 $94,433 in Madison, WI (−$5,567).
Livability — Orlando, FL: 66 · Madison, WI: 62 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 2,385 sqft in Orlando vs 1,878 sqft in Madison ($210 vs $266 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Orlando, FL | Madison, WI | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $23,724 | $20,196 | −$3,528 |
| Groceries | $4,813 | $4,691 | −$122 |
| Transportation | $4,800 | $3,085 | −$1,715 |
| Utilities | $1,656 | $2,076 | +$420 |
| Insurance | $4,200 | $1,300 | −$2,900 |
| Taxes | $4,915 | $15,162 | +$10,247 |
| Total | $44,108 | $46,510 | +$2,401 |
Side by side
| Metric | Orlando, FL | Madison, WI |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 101.6 | 95.9 |
| Unemployment rate | 5.26% | 2.42% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 12.1% | 6.1% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 44 | 42 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.78 | $5.46 |
| Median home price | $387,733 | $452,769 |
| Home price ÷ income | 5.4× | 5.5× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | -3.1% | 2.7% |
| Price per square foot | $210 | $266 |
| Median rent | $1,977 | $1,683 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 9.1% | 10.9% |
| Combined sales tax | 7.02% | 5.43% |
| Capital gains tax | None | 7.65% |
| Property tax rate | 0.80% | 1.75% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $7,500 | $6,800 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $10,000 | $13,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | None | None |
| Avg commute (min) | 29 | 22 |
| Home insurance / yr | $4,200 | $1,300 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $2,900 | $1,400 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $1,400 | $600 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 15.4 | 19.2 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.35 | 3.20 |
| Violent crime /100k | 380 | 320 |
| Avg summer high °F | 91 | 82 |
| Avg winter low °F | 52 | 8 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 3 | 3 |