$100k a year, no longer in Madison

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Charleston, SC cityscape

if you left madison

Charleston

sc · metro 849k

photo: Connor Scott McManus / pexels

a dispatch from

charleston

SC

32.78°N

79.94°W

Charleston is pastel rowhouses, cobblestone streets, the smell of pluff mud at low tide, and shrimp and grits that should be illegal everywhere else. The historic district is a working postcard, the food scene punches way above its size, and the porches are made for sitting. Spoleto Festival every spring brings world-class arts. It's small, dense, and absurdly photogenic.

metro849k

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01 · the verdict

the verdict

$333

the monthly cost of moving past Madison

You'd pay for Charleston. The question is whether the days are worth the difference.
landable, recorded on the charleston entry

02 · the money

a quick ledger.

01rent

$1,987/mo

19% more expensive than Madison(vs $1,673/mo)

02state income tax

6.5%

$19/mo more in state tax than Madison

vs 6.27% in Madison

03after rent

$5,805/mo

$333 less than Madison

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

04a house here

$432k

7% cheaper than Madison

vs $465k in Madison

05metro size

849k

vs 694k in Madison

03 · the life

field notes, weather & such.

212

pleasant days a year, in charleston.

Madison keeps to 147 pleasant days a year.

Comparable to Madison for events and concerts.
on a typical month
·outdoorscore

67/100

0% lower than Madison

vs 67/100 in Madison

Closest outdoor draw: Cape Romain National Wildlife Refuge.Wilderness Area, 19.4 mi.

·walk score®

92/100

5% higher than Madison

vs 88/100 in Madison

Walk Score® methodology

·nonstops

20

82% more than Madison

vs 11 nonstops in Madison

04 · see also

neighbors of charleston on the map of tradeoffs:

see also

reno

$620/mo cheaper

turn the page

see also

asheville

$415/mo cheaper

turn the page

see also

greenville

$436/mo cheaper

turn the page

compare charleston with:

RenoAshevilleGreenville