Palm Bay, FL vs Atlanta, GA
Moving from Palm Bay to Atlanta? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($344,841 → $382,938 median home) and taxes.
Palm Bay vs Atlanta 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 Palm Bay, FL, you'd need about $99,170 in Atlanta, GA (−$830).
Livability — Palm Bay, FL: 66 · Atlanta, GA: 66 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 2,682 sqft in Palm Bay vs 2,677 sqft in Atlanta ($186 vs $187 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Palm Bay, FL | Atlanta, GA | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $23,040 | $22,080 | −$960 |
| Groceries | $4,813 | $4,926 | +$113 |
| Transportation | $4,800 | $3,515 | −$1,285 |
| Utilities | $1,656 | $1,656 | +$0 |
| Insurance | $4,200 | $2,100 | −$2,100 |
| Taxes | $4,459 | $10,533 | +$6,074 |
| Total | $42,968 | $44,810 | +$1,842 |
Side by side
| Metric | Palm Bay, FL | Atlanta, GA |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 101.3 | 100.5 |
| Unemployment rate | 4.86% | 5.04% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 7.5% | 6.9% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 40 | 56 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.77 | $5.72 |
| Median home price | $344,841 | $382,938 |
| Home price ÷ income | 4.8× | 4.6× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | -2.2% | -2.1% |
| Price per square foot | $186 | $187 |
| Median rent | $1,920 | $1,840 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 9.1% | 8.9% |
| Combined sales tax | 7.02% | 7.38% |
| Capital gains tax | None | 5.39% |
| Property tax rate | 0.72% | 0.85% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $7,500 | $6,400 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $10,000 | $9,500 |
| Vehicle property tax | None | None |
| Avg commute (min) | 26 | 32 |
| Home insurance / yr | $4,200 | $2,100 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $2,900 | $1,900 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $1,400 | $700 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 15.4 | 15.4 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.35 | 3.15 |
| Violent crime /100k | 380 | 370 |
| Avg summer high °F | 91 | 89 |
| Avg winter low °F | 52 | 34 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 3 | 2 |