Providence, RI vs Lakeland, FL
Moving from Providence to Lakeland? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($524,867 → $298,816 median home) and taxes.
Providence vs Lakeland 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 Providence, RI, you'd need about $96,278 in Lakeland, FL (−$3,722).
Livability — Providence, RI: 58 · Lakeland, FL: 69 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 1,524 sqft in Providence vs 3,096 sqft in Lakeland ($328 vs $162 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Providence, RI | Lakeland, FL | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $25,956 | $22,188 | −$3,768 |
| Groceries | $4,922 | $4,813 | −$108 |
| Transportation | $3,875 | $4,800 | +$925 |
| Utilities | $3,060 | $1,656 | −$1,404 |
| Insurance | $1,700 | $4,200 | +$2,500 |
| Taxes | $13,121 | $4,036 | −$9,085 |
| Total | $52,634 | $41,693 | −$10,940 |
Side by side
| Metric | Providence, RI | Lakeland, FL |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 101.5 | 97.7 |
| Unemployment rate | 5.82% | 4.63% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 3.6% | 12.9% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 42 | 42 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.78 | $5.56 |
| Median home price | $524,867 | $298,816 |
| Home price ÷ income | 6.5× | 4.9× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 3.1% | -3.2% |
| Price per square foot | $328 | $162 |
| Median rent | $2,163 | $1,849 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 11.4% | 9.1% |
| Combined sales tax | 7.00% | 7.02% |
| Capital gains tax | 5.99% | None |
| Property tax rate | 1.31% | 0.73% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $7,600 | $7,500 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $13,000 | $10,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | None | None |
| Avg commute (min) | 26 | 30 |
| Home insurance / yr | $1,700 | $4,200 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $2,100 | $2,900 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $900 | $1,400 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 28.3 | 15.4 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.35 | 3.35 |
| Natural gas / mo | $92 | $38 |
| Water & sewer / mo | $80 | $88 |
| Home internet / mo | $67 | $76 |
| Violent crime /100k | 240 | 380 |
| Avg summer high °F | 82 | 91 |
| Avg winter low °F | 21 | 52 |
| Annual precipitation (in) | 47.5 | 51.5 |
| Annual snowfall (in) | 36.6 | 0.0 |
| Sunshine (% possible) | 56% | 68% |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 4 | 3 |