Tuscaloosa, AL vs Philadelphia, PA
Moving from Tuscaloosa to Philadelphia? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($223,201 → $390,463 median home) and taxes.
Tuscaloosa 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 Tuscaloosa, AL, you'd need about $114,876 in Philadelphia, PA (+$14,876).
Livability — Tuscaloosa, AL: 74 · Philadelphia, PA: 62 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 4,591 sqft in Tuscaloosa vs 2,241 sqft in Philadelphia ($109 vs $223 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Tuscaloosa, AL | Philadelphia, PA | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $17,820 | $22,968 | +$5,148 |
| Groceries | $4,729 | $4,909 | +$180 |
| Transportation | $3,465 | $3,440 | −$25 |
| Utilities | $1,884 | $2,316 | +$432 |
| Insurance | $2,400 | $1,200 | −$1,200 |
| Taxes | $8,901 | $10,192 | +$1,292 |
| Total | $39,199 | $45,025 | +$5,826 |
Side by side
| Metric | Tuscaloosa, AL | Philadelphia, PA |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 89.1 | 102.4 |
| Unemployment rate | 5.59% | 6.12% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 13.9% | 2.8% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 37 | 53 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.07 | $5.82 |
| Median home price | $223,201 | $390,463 |
| Home price ÷ income | 3.8× | 4.6× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 0.4% | 2.5% |
| Price per square foot | $109 | $223 |
| Median rent | $1,485 | $1,914 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 9.8% | 10.6% |
| Combined sales tax | 9.25% | 6.34% |
| Capital gains tax | 5.00% | 3.07% |
| Property tax rate | 0.33% | 1.61% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,200 | $7,000 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $7,000 | $12,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | 0.70% | None |
| Avg commute (min) | 24 | 29 |
| Home insurance / yr | $2,400 | $1,200 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,900 | $1,600 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $800 | $650 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 17.4 | 21.5 |
| Gas $/gal | 2.95 | 3.55 |
| Violent crime /100k | 450 | 390 |
| Avg summer high °F | 91 | 85 |
| Avg winter low °F | 33 | 22 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 2 | 3 |