SalaryCompareTool

Sacramento, CA vs Birmingham, AL

Moving from Sacramento to Birmingham? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($582,707 → $262,556 median home) and taxes.

Sacramento vs Birmingham at a glance

Bars scaled to the range across all 200 metros; labels show actual values.

Sacramento, CA Birmingham, AL Cost-of-living index Sacramento, CA — Cost-of-living index: 109 109 Birmingham, AL — Cost-of-living index: 92 92 Median home price Sacramento, CA — Median home price: $583k $583k Birmingham, AL — Median home price: $263k $263k Price per sqft Sacramento, CA — Price per sqft: $389 $389 Birmingham, AL — Price per sqft: $128 $128 Median rent Sacramento, CA — Median rent: $2,283 $2,283 Birmingham, AL — Median rent: $1,448 $1,448 Combined sales tax Sacramento, CA — Combined sales tax: 8.8% 8.8% Birmingham, AL — Combined sales tax: 9.3% 9.3% Property tax rate Sacramento, CA — Property tax rate: 0.79% 0.79% Birmingham, AL — Property tax rate: 0.50% 0.50% Violent crime /100k Sacramento, CA — Violent crime /100k: 500 500 Birmingham, AL — Violent crime /100k: 450 450 Electricity ¢/kWh Sacramento, CA — Electricity ¢/kWh: 35.3 35.3 Birmingham, AL — Electricity ¢/kWh: 17.4 17.4 Avg commute (min) Sacramento, CA — Avg commute (min): 28 28 Birmingham, AL — Avg commute (min): 27 27 Avg summer high °F Sacramento, CA — Avg summer high °F: 84° 84° Birmingham, AL — Avg summer high °F: 91° 91° Avg winter low °F Sacramento, CA — Avg winter low °F: 45° 45° Birmingham, AL — Avg winter low °F: 33° 33°

To keep the same standard of living as $100,000 in Sacramento, CA, you'd need about $84,118 in Birmingham, AL (−$15,882).

Livability — Sacramento, CA: 49 · Birmingham, AL: 71 (0–100).

What your home budget buys

A $500,000 home budget gets you about 1,287 sqft in Sacramento vs 3,903 sqft in Birmingham ($389 vs $128 per sqft).

Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)

CategorySacramento, CABirmingham, ALDifference
Housing $27,396 $17,376 −$10,020
Groceries $5,247 $4,729 −$517
Transportation $5,125 $3,465 −$1,660
Utilities $3,804 $1,884 −$1,920
Insurance $1,500 $2,400 +$900
Taxes $20,410 $9,314 −$11,096
Total $63,482 $39,168 −$24,314

Side by side

MetricSacramento, CABirmingham, AL
Cost-of-living index109.191.8
Unemployment rate5.74%4.90%
Population growth (5-yr)5.6%-2.6%
Air quality (median AQI)5557
Big Mac price (est.)$6.21$5.22
Median home price$582,707$262,556
Home price ÷ income6.5×3.8×
1-yr home appreciation-1.6%2.0%
Price per square foot$389$128
Median rent$2,283$1,448
Total tax burden (% income)13.5%9.8%
Combined sales tax8.82%9.25%
Capital gains tax13.30%5.00%
Property tax rate0.79%0.50%
Healthcare (annual)$7,200$6,200
Childcare (annual, infant)$19,000$7,000
Vehicle property tax0.65%0.70%
Avg commute (min)2827
Home insurance / yr$1,500$2,400
Auto insurance / yr$2,400$1,900
Flood insurance / yr$750$800
Earthquake insurance / yr$950$100
Electricity ¢/kWh35.317.4
Gas $/gal4.852.95
Violent crime /100k500450
Avg summer high °F8491
Avg winter low °F4533
Permit difficulty (1–5)52
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