$100k salary, packing up from Mobile

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Albuquerque, NM cityscape

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Albuquerque

nm · metro 924k

photo: Lad Fury / pexels

a dispatch from

albuquerque

NM

35.08°N

106.65°W

Albuquerque is green chile on everything, the Sandia Mountains turning pink at sunset (the name literally means watermelon), and the Balloon Fiesta in October when 500+ hot air balloons fill the sky. The old town adobes feel like the 1700s, the food fuses Native, Mexican, and Spanish in ways you won't get anywhere else. Breaking Bad fans will recognize half the city, and locals are good-natured about it.

metro924k

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01 · the verdict

the verdict

$262

more each month than Mobile ran you

Albuquerque costs meaningfully more. Whether it earns that back in the day-to-day is the actual question.
landable, recorded on the albuquerque entry

02 · the money

a quick ledger.

01rent

$1,489/mo

14% more expensive than Mobile(vs $1,302/mo)

02state income tax

5.9%

$75/mo more in state tax than Mobile

vs 5% in Mobile

03after rent

$6,353/mo

$262 less than Mobile

gross of federal tax. a comparison, not a paycheck.

04a house here

$351k

81% more expensive than Mobile

vs $194k in Mobile

05metro size

924k

vs 412k in Mobile

03 · the life

field notes, weather & such.

205

pleasant days a year, in albuquerque.

Mobile actually gets more: 225 pleasant days a year. Summer is real but not punishing: 34 days top 95° vs Mobile's 3.

A month here packs 1.8× the events of Mobile.
on a typical month
·outdoorscore

81/100

37% higher than Mobile

vs 59/100 in Mobile

Closest outdoor draw: Sandia Mountain Wilderness, 13.4 mi.

·walk score®

94/100

36% higher than Mobile

vs 69/100 in Mobile

Walk Score® methodology

·nonstops

23

360% more than Mobile

vs 5 nonstops in Mobile

04 · see also

same energy as albuquerque, different zip code:

see also

spartanburg

$5/mo cheaper

turn the page

see also

greenville

more things to do

turn the page

see also

spokane

$460/mo cheaper

turn the page

compare albuquerque with:

SpartanburgGreenvilleSpokane