Washington, DC vs Philadelphia, PA
Moving from Washington to Philadelphia? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($583,013 → $390,463 median home) and taxes.
Washington 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 Washington, DC, you'd need about $93,445 in Philadelphia, PA (−$6,555).
Livability — Washington, DC: 39 · Philadelphia, PA: 62 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 1,286 sqft in Washington vs 2,241 sqft in Philadelphia ($389 vs $223 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Washington, DC | Philadelphia, PA | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $28,992 | $22,968 | −$6,024 |
| Groceries | $5,318 | $4,909 | −$409 |
| Transportation | $3,855 | $3,440 | −$415 |
| Utilities | $2,748 | $2,316 | −$432 |
| Insurance | $1,400 | $1,200 | −$200 |
| Taxes | $17,710 | $10,192 | −$7,518 |
| Total | $60,023 | $45,025 | −$14,998 |
Side by side
| Metric | Washington, DC | Philadelphia, PA |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 109.5 | 102.4 |
| Unemployment rate | 4.87% | 6.12% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 4.2% | 2.8% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 49 | 53 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $6.23 | $5.82 |
| Median home price | $583,013 | $390,463 |
| Home price ÷ income | 4.9× | 4.6× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | -0.5% | 2.5% |
| Price per square foot | $389 | $223 |
| Median rent | $2,416 | $1,914 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 12.0% | 10.6% |
| Combined sales tax | 6.00% | 6.34% |
| Capital gains tax | 10.75% | 3.07% |
| Property tax rate | 0.95% | 1.61% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $7,800 | $7,000 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $26,000 | $12,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | None | None |
| Avg commute (min) | 34 | 29 |
| Home insurance / yr | $1,400 | $1,200 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $2,000 | $1,600 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $800 | $650 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 25.4 | 21.5 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.40 | 3.55 |
| Violent crime /100k | 1,000 | 390 |
| Avg summer high °F | 88 | 85 |
| Avg winter low °F | 29 | 22 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 4 | 3 |