with $100k coming in, swapping out of Des Moines

change
Atlanta, GA cityscape

instead of des moines

Atlanta

ga · metro 6.3M

photo: K / pexels

a dispatch from

atlanta

GA

33.75°N

84.39°W

Atlanta is hip-hop's current capital, with 'Peachtree' in seemingly every other street name and the busiest airport in the world acting as the city's front door. The Beltline turned old rail corridors into a 22-mile loop of murals, breweries, and joggers. Food culture spans soul food, Vietnamese banh mi in Buford Highway strip malls, and barbecue. The tree canopy is one of the densest in any major American city.

metro6.3M

01 · the verdict

the verdict

$503

more expensive each month than Des Moines

Atlanta costs more than Des Moines, and you'll feel it. The upside has to come from somewhere other than your budget.
landable, recorded on the atlanta entry

02 · the money

a quick ledger.

01rent

$1,814/mo

43% more expensive than Des Moines(vs $1,268/mo)

02state income tax

5.49%

$43/mo less in state tax than Des Moines

vs 6% in Des Moines

03after rent

$6,062/mo

$503 less than Des Moines

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

04a house here

$386k

29% more expensive than Des Moines

vs $300k in Des Moines

05metro size

6.3M

vs 737k in Des Moines

03 · the life

field notes, weather & such.

204

pleasant days a year, in atlanta.

Des Moines only logs 151 pleasant days.

5.2× the events of Des Moines, and the calendar shows it.
on a typical month
·outdoorscore

67/100

22% higher than Des Moines

vs 55/100 in Des Moines

Closest outdoor draw: Sweetwater Creek State Park, 13.1 mi.

·walk score®

93/100

19% higher than Des Moines

vs 78/100 in Des Moines

Walk Score® methodology

·nonstops

217

1176% more than Des Moines

vs 17 nonstops in Des Moines

04 · see also

neighbors of atlanta on the map of tradeoffs:

compare atlanta with: