Philadelphia, PA vs Myrtle Beach, SC
Moving from Philadelphia to Myrtle Beach? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($390,463 → $340,239 median home) and taxes.
Philadelphia vs Myrtle Beach 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 $91,609 in Myrtle Beach, SC (−$8,391).
Livability — Philadelphia, PA: 62 · Myrtle Beach, SC: 67 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 2,241 sqft in Philadelphia vs 2,939 sqft in Myrtle Beach ($223 vs $170 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Philadelphia, PA | Myrtle Beach, SC | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $22,968 | $20,712 | −$2,256 |
| 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 | $10,008 | −$184 |
| Total | $45,025 | $42,830 | −$2,194 |
Side by side
| Metric | Philadelphia, PA | Myrtle Beach, SC |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 102.4 | 93.8 |
| Unemployment rate | 6.12% | 5.41% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 2.8% | 14.7% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 53 | 40 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.82 | $5.34 |
| Median home price | $390,463 | $340,239 |
| Home price ÷ income | 4.6× | 5.4× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 2.5% | -0.6% |
| Price per square foot | $223 | $170 |
| Median rent | $1,914 | $1,726 |
| 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% | 0.41% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $7,000 | $6,500 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $12,000 | $8,500 |
| Vehicle property tax | None | 2.33% |
| Avg commute (min) | 29 | 23 |
| 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 |