Washington, DC vs Phoenix, AZ
Moving from Washington to Phoenix? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($583,013 → $448,352 median home) and taxes.
Washington vs Phoenix 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 $95,557 in Phoenix, AZ (−$4,443).
Livability — Washington, DC: 39 · Phoenix, AZ: 62 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 1,286 sqft in Washington vs 2,063 sqft in Phoenix ($389 vs $242 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Washington, DC | Phoenix, AZ | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $28,992 | $20,904 | −$8,088 |
| Groceries | $5,318 | $4,919 | −$399 |
| Transportation | $3,855 | $3,960 | +$105 |
| Utilities | $2,748 | $1,668 | −$1,080 |
| Insurance | $1,400 | $1,800 | +$400 |
| Taxes | $17,710 | $7,280 | −$10,430 |
| Total | $60,023 | $40,531 | −$19,492 |
Side by side
| Metric | Washington, DC | Phoenix, AZ |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 109.5 | 104.7 |
| Unemployment rate | 4.87% | 4.88% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 4.2% | 6.7% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 42 | 42 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $6.23 | $5.96 |
| Median home price | $583,013 | $448,352 |
| Home price ÷ income | 4.9× | 5.6× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | -0.5% | -1.7% |
| Price per square foot | $389 | $242 |
| Median rent | $2,416 | $1,742 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 12.0% | 9.5% |
| Combined sales tax | 6.00% | 8.38% |
| Capital gains tax | 10.75% | 2.50% |
| Property tax rate | 0.95% | 0.51% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $7,800 | $6,300 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $26,000 | $12,500 |
| Vehicle property tax | None | 1.68% |
| Avg commute (min) | 34 | 27 |
| Home insurance / yr | $1,400 | $1,800 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $2,000 | $1,900 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $800 | $550 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 25.4 | 15.5 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.40 | 3.60 |
| Natural gas / mo | $80 | $54 |
| Water & sewer / mo | $271 | $106 |
| Home internet / mo | $81 | $77 |
| Violent crime /100k | 1,000 | 430 |
| Avg summer high °F | 88 | 104 |
| Avg winter low °F | 29 | 41 |
| Annual precipitation (in) | 41.8 | 7.2 |
| Annual snowfall (in) | 13.7 | 0.0 |
| Sunshine (% possible) | 56% | 85% |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 4 | 2 |