Virginia Beach, VA vs Indianapolis, IN
Moving from Virginia Beach to Indianapolis? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($373,678 → $295,921 median home) and taxes.
Virginia Beach vs Indianapolis 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 Virginia Beach, VA, you'd need about $96,856 in Indianapolis, IN (−$3,144).
Livability — Virginia Beach, VA: 68 · Indianapolis, IN: 71 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 2,677 sqft in Virginia Beach vs 3,211 sqft in Indianapolis ($187 vs $156 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Virginia Beach, VA | Indianapolis, IN | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $22,344 | $18,636 | −$3,708 |
| Groceries | $4,853 | $4,740 | −$113 |
| Transportation | $3,080 | $3,250 | +$170 |
| Utilities | $1,872 | $1,932 | +$60 |
| Insurance | $1,500 | $1,600 | +$100 |
| Taxes | $10,303 | $7,367 | −$2,935 |
| Total | $43,952 | $37,525 | −$6,427 |
Side by side
| Metric | Virginia Beach, VA | Indianapolis, IN |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 97.7 | 94.7 |
| Unemployment rate | 5.24% | 4.28% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 4.7% | 6.1% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 41 | 55 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.56 | $5.39 |
| Median home price | $373,678 | $295,921 |
| Home price ÷ income | 4.8× | 4.0× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 2.5% | 1.3% |
| Price per square foot | $187 | $156 |
| Median rent | $1,862 | $1,553 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 12.5% | 9.3% |
| Combined sales tax | 5.73% | 7.00% |
| Capital gains tax | 5.75% | 3.05% |
| Property tax rate | 0.86% | 0.84% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,800 | $6,600 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $15,000 | $12,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | 3.97% | 1.20% |
| Avg commute (min) | 25 | 25 |
| Home insurance / yr | $1,500 | $1,600 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,400 | $1,400 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $700 | $600 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 17.4 | 17.9 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.20 | 3.30 |
| Violent crime /100k | 200 | 360 |
| Avg summer high °F | 87 | 86 |
| Avg winter low °F | 28 | 20 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 3 | 2 |