Syracuse, NY vs Philadelphia, PA
Moving from Syracuse to Philadelphia? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($264,903 → $390,463 median home) and taxes.
Syracuse vs Philadelphia 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 Syracuse, NY, you'd need about $106,943 in Philadelphia, PA (+$6,943).
Livability — Syracuse, NY: 61 · Philadelphia, PA: 62 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 3,019 sqft in Syracuse vs 2,241 sqft in Philadelphia ($166 vs $223 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Syracuse, NY | Philadelphia, PA | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $19,596 | $22,968 | +$3,372 |
| Groceries | $4,868 | $4,909 | +$41 |
| Transportation | $3,895 | $3,440 | −$455 |
| Utilities | $3,180 | $2,316 | −$864 |
| Insurance | $1,600 | $1,200 | −$400 |
| Taxes | $18,225 | $10,192 | −$8,033 |
| Total | $51,364 | $45,025 | −$6,339 |
Side by side
| Metric | Syracuse, NY | Philadelphia, PA |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 95.7 | 102.4 |
| Unemployment rate | 5.79% | 6.12% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | -0.1% | 2.8% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 42 | 42 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.45 | $5.82 |
| Median home price | $264,903 | $390,463 |
| Home price ÷ income | 3.8× | 4.6× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 6.6% | 2.5% |
| Price per square foot | $166 | $223 |
| Median rent | $1,633 | $1,914 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 15.9% | 10.6% |
| Combined sales tax | 8.52% | 6.34% |
| Capital gains tax | 10.90% | 3.07% |
| Property tax rate | 2.64% | 1.61% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $7,800 | $7,000 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $17,000 | $12,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | None | None |
| Avg commute (min) | 21 | 29 |
| Home insurance / yr | $1,600 | $1,200 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $2,100 | $1,600 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $800 | $650 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 29.4 | 21.5 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.45 | 3.55 |
| Natural gas / mo | $98 | $82 |
| Water & sewer / mo | $87 | $65 |
| Home internet / mo | $76 | $78 |
| Violent crime /100k | 350 | 390 |
| Avg summer high °F | 83 | 85 |
| Avg winter low °F | 16 | 22 |
| Annual precipitation (in) | 40.0 | 44.1 |
| Annual snowfall (in) | 48.0 | 23.1 |
| Sunshine (% possible) | 50% | 56% |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 5 | 3 |