Virginia Beach, VA vs Lexington, KY
Moving from Virginia Beach to Lexington? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($373,678 → $327,671 median home) and taxes.
Virginia Beach vs Lexington 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 $94,657 in Lexington, KY (−$5,343).
Livability — Virginia Beach, VA: 68 · Lexington, KY: 72 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 2,677 sqft in Virginia Beach vs 2,899 sqft in Lexington ($187 vs $173 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Virginia Beach, VA | Lexington, KY | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $22,344 | $18,336 | −$4,008 |
| Groceries | $4,853 | $4,721 | −$132 |
| Transportation | $3,080 | $3,870 | +$790 |
| Utilities | $1,872 | $1,620 | −$252 |
| Insurance | $1,500 | $2,200 | +$700 |
| Taxes | $10,303 | $8,073 | −$2,229 |
| Total | $43,952 | $38,820 | −$5,132 |
Side by side
| Metric | Virginia Beach, VA | Lexington, KY |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 97.7 | 92.5 |
| Unemployment rate | 5.24% | 4.70% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 4.7% | 3.0% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 41 | 43 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.56 | $5.26 |
| Median home price | $373,678 | $327,671 |
| Home price ÷ income | 4.8× | 4.8× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 2.5% | 2.7% |
| Price per square foot | $187 | $173 |
| Median rent | $1,862 | $1,528 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 12.5% | 9.6% |
| Combined sales tax | 5.73% | 6.00% |
| Capital gains tax | 5.75% | 4.00% |
| Property tax rate | 0.86% | 0.83% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,800 | $6,300 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $15,000 | $9,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | 3.97% | 1.44% |
| Avg commute (min) | 25 | 22 |
| Home insurance / yr | $1,500 | $2,200 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,400 | $2,200 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $700 | $700 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $250 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 17.4 | 15.0 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.20 | 3.10 |
| Violent crime /100k | 200 | 260 |
| Avg summer high °F | 87 | 88 |
| Avg winter low °F | 28 | 26 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 3 | 2 |