Tampa, FL vs Scranton, PA
Moving from Tampa to Scranton? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($360,738 → $227,793 median home) and taxes.
Tampa vs Scranton 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 Tampa, FL, you'd need about $91,137 in Scranton, PA (−$8,863).
Livability — Tampa, FL: 65 · Scranton, PA: 68 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 2,564 sqft in Tampa vs 3,840 sqft in Scranton ($195 vs $130 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Tampa, FL | Scranton, PA | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $24,216 | $16,296 | −$7,920 |
| Groceries | $4,949 | $4,915 | −$34 |
| Transportation | $4,800 | $3,440 | −$1,360 |
| Utilities | $1,656 | $2,316 | +$660 |
| Insurance | $4,200 | $1,200 | −$3,000 |
| Taxes | $4,642 | $7,898 | +$3,256 |
| Total | $44,463 | $36,065 | −$8,398 |
Side by side
| Metric | Tampa, FL | Scranton, PA |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 102.5 | 93.4 |
| Unemployment rate | 4.92% | 5.40% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 7.3% | 1.7% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 51 | 40 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.83 | $5.31 |
| Median home price | $360,738 | $227,793 |
| Home price ÷ income | 5.4× | 3.7× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | -3.4% | 1.0% |
| Price per square foot | $195 | $130 |
| Median rent | $2,018 | $1,358 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 9.1% | 10.6% |
| Combined sales tax | 7.02% | 6.34% |
| Capital gains tax | None | 3.07% |
| Property tax rate | 0.80% | 1.60% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $7,500 | $7,000 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $10,000 | $12,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | None | None |
| Avg commute (min) | 28 | 23 |
| Home insurance / yr | $4,200 | $1,200 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $2,900 | $1,600 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $1,400 | $650 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 15.4 | 21.5 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.35 | 3.55 |
| Violent crime /100k | 380 | 390 |
| Avg summer high °F | 91 | 85 |
| Avg winter low °F | 52 | 22 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 3 | 3 |