Cost of Living in Charleston, S.C. vs. other U.S. Cities (35 City Comparison)
The debate about cost of living increases in Charleston has come under tremendous scrutiny and pressure the last few years. Many speculate that this region is taking advantage of the recent notoriety and utilizing opportunism to raise prices across the board on housing, leisure and taxation. We wanted to see if there was validity to the concerns.
We reviewed cost of living in Charleston and weighed it against some of the large and mid-sized U.S. cities to see how we compare. The results may surprise you.
To provide some reference, Numbeo has provided the cities with the highest cost of living globally. The top cities in the United States are:
- New York City, NY
- San Francisco, CA
- Anchorage, AK
- Honolulu, HI
- Brooklyn, NY
- Rockville, MD
- Bloomington, IN
- Washington D.C.
- Santa Rosa, CA
- Arlington, VA
Annual Costs needed for a family of 2 adults and 2 children – 35 City Comparison
- Memphis, TN – $52,971
- Hilton Head, SC – $54,913
- Oklahoma City, OK – $55,496
- Myrtle Beach, SC – $58,649
- Charleston – $60,067
- Houston, TX – $60,608
- Louisville, KY – $60,764
- Cleveland, OH – $60,900
- Dallas, TX – $61,150
- Salt Lake City, UT – $62,003
- Birmingham, AL – $63,041
- Savannah, GA – $63,335
- Orlando, FL – $63,516
- Atlanta, GA – $63,888
- Santa Fe, NM – $63,909
- Austin, TX – $64,657
- Pittsburgh, PA – $64,691
- Charlotte, NC – $65,492
- Jacksonville, FL – $66,321
- Raleigh, NC – $66,470
- Portland, OR – $67,802
- Richmond, VA – $68,845
- Minneapolis, MN – $69,636
- Denver, CO – $71,104
- Chicago, IL – $71.995
- Seattle, WA – $72,274
- Virginia Beach, VA / Norfolk, VA – $73,994
- San Diego, CA – $74,425
- Madison, WI – $75,252
- Boulder, CO – $76,017
- Philadelphia, PA – $76,393
- Hartford, CT – $81,623
- Boston, MA – $85,793
- New York City, NY – $98,722
- Washington, D.C. – $106,493
35 city average: $70,813
Charleston, South Carolina – $60,067 (85% against the average) and the fifth (5th) lowest on the list of 35 reviewed cities.
*Data provided by EPI.org
Charleston Daily
Charleston Daily is a concept in community. Its mission is to promote, assist, and celebrate in everything Charleston, South Carolina. By partnering with businesses, community leaders, volunteers and events, we are spreading the love that is Charleston. As this city continues to grow and prosper, we want to help spread the message to all about how wonderful this community is. Charleston is about the people, community, water, land, history, heritage and the true southern warmth it brings with each and every day.
So you mean it takes $60,000 to raise a family of four? That means one breadwinner would have to bring in $85,000.00 before taxes. Or am I reading this incorrectly.
$60,000 is the average annual expenses spent for a family of 4.
Well, they can’t buy a house on that amount. Not when the median home price in Mt P is almost $400K.
Thank you for the information. But instead of comparing Charleston to New York City, for the locals Charleston should be compared to Charleston. How much did it cost to live here 10 years ago? 20 years ago? Because of incomes and the cost of living some locals believe they’re getting pushed out. Great info, thanks again.
Great point. Comparing the cost of living to past cost in the Charleston area would show the increase level. Comparing that cost increase to increases of the cites would better show how growth has impacted the low country.
That’s a crock. As someone who lived and worked in Charleston most of my life but moved to Charlotte, I’m finding housing prices noticably lower in the Charlotte area, not to mention the jobs pay lower in Charleston.
This calculator says Charleston is 2.5% higher: https://www.bankrate.com/calculators/savings/moving-cost-of-living-calculator.aspx
This one says 5% higher: http://money.cnn.com/calculator/pf/cost-of-living/
How much did you get paid to publish this puff piece?
I live downtown Chicago (moving to Charleston). The average rate for a 1 bedroom apt is $1800. There is no way a family of 4 could survive on that amount hereibing Downtown proper. Perhaps an hour away, but not Chicago. Makes me doubt the rest of the numbers.
This is so inaccurate. Charleston is so expensive.