Philadelphia, PA vs Charleston, SC
Moving from Philadelphia to Charleston? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($390,463 → $435,877 median home) and taxes.
Philadelphia 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 Philadelphia, PA, you'd need about $98,764 in Charleston, SC (−$1,236).
Livability — Philadelphia, PA: 62 · Charleston, SC: 60 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 2,241 sqft in Philadelphia vs 2,295 sqft in Charleston ($223 vs $218 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Philadelphia, PA | Charleston, SC | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $22,968 | $24,288 | +$1,320 |
| Groceries | $4,909 | $4,797 | −$111 |
| Transportation | $3,440 | $3,465 | +$25 |
| Utilities | $2,316 | $1,848 | −$468 |
| Insurance | $1,200 | $2,000 | +$800 |
| Taxes | $10,192 | $10,552 | +$360 |
| Total | $45,025 | $46,950 | +$1,926 |
Side by side
| Metric | Philadelphia, PA | Charleston, SC |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 102.4 | 101.1 |
| Unemployment rate | 6.12% | 4.07% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 2.8% | 8.0% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 53 | 44 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.82 | $5.75 |
| Median home price | $390,463 | $435,877 |
| Home price ÷ income | 4.6× | 5.6× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 2.5% | -0.9% |
| Price per square foot | $223 | $218 |
| Median rent | $1,914 | $2,024 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 10.6% | 8.9% |
| Combined sales tax | 6.34% | 7.44% |
| Capital gains tax | 3.07% | 6.40% |
| Property tax rate | 1.61% | 0.49% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $7,000 | $6,500 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $12,000 | $8,500 |
| Vehicle property tax | None | 2.33% |
| Avg commute (min) | 29 | 27 |
| Home insurance / yr | $1,200 | $2,000 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,600 | $1,900 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $650 | $900 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $350 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 21.5 | 17.1 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.55 | 3.05 |
| Violent crime /100k | 390 | 530 |
| Avg summer high °F | 85 | 91 |
| Avg winter low °F | 22 | 36 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 3 | 2 |