Tucson, AZ vs Tampa, FL
Moving from Tucson to Tampa? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($343,580 → $360,738 median home) and taxes.
Tucson vs Tampa 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 Tucson, AZ, you'd need about $107,944 in Tampa, FL (+$7,944).
Livability — Tucson, AZ: 70 · Tampa, FL: 65 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 2,693 sqft in Tucson vs 2,564 sqft in Tampa ($186 vs $195 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Tucson, AZ | Tampa, FL | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $17,676 | $24,216 | +$6,540 |
| Groceries | $4,841 | $4,949 | +$108 |
| Transportation | $3,960 | $4,800 | +$840 |
| Utilities | $1,668 | $1,656 | −$12 |
| Insurance | $1,800 | $4,200 | +$2,400 |
| Taxes | $7,594 | $4,642 | −$2,952 |
| Total | $37,539 | $44,463 | +$6,924 |
Side by side
| Metric | Tucson, AZ | Tampa, FL |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 94.9 | 102.5 |
| Unemployment rate | 5.87% | 4.92% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 3.5% | 7.3% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 56 | 51 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.40 | $5.83 |
| Median home price | $343,580 | $360,738 |
| Home price ÷ income | 5.3× | 5.4× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | -2.1% | -3.4% |
| Price per square foot | $186 | $195 |
| Median rent | $1,473 | $2,018 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 9.5% | 9.1% |
| Combined sales tax | 8.38% | 7.02% |
| Capital gains tax | 2.50% | None |
| Property tax rate | 0.84% | 0.80% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,300 | $7,500 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $12,500 | $10,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | 1.68% | None |
| Avg commute (min) | 25 | 28 |
| Home insurance / yr | $1,800 | $4,200 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,900 | $2,900 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $550 | $1,400 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 15.5 | 15.4 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.60 | 3.35 |
| Violent crime /100k | 430 | 380 |
| Avg summer high °F | 104 | 91 |
| Avg winter low °F | 41 | 52 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 2 | 3 |