on $100k a year, leaving Pittsburgh

change
Charleston, SC cityscape

next stop after pittsburgh

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

$800

more each month than Pittsburgh ran you

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

02 · the money

a quick ledger.

01rent

$1,987/mo

35% more expensive than Pittsburgh(vs $1,473/mo)

02state income tax

6.5%

$286/mo more in state tax than Pittsburgh

vs 3.07% in Pittsburgh

03after rent

$5,805/mo

$800 less than Pittsburgh

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

04a house here

$432k

94% more expensive than Pittsburgh

vs $223k in Pittsburgh

05metro size

849k

vs 2.4M in Pittsburgh

03 · the life

field notes, weather & such.

212

pleasant days a year, in charleston.

Pittsburgh keeps to 161 pleasant days a year.

Pittsburgh hosts 1.9× more events.
on a typical month
·outdoorscore

67/100

3% lower than Pittsburgh

vs 69/100 in Pittsburgh

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

·walk score®

92/100

7% lower than Pittsburgh

vs 99/100 in Pittsburgh

Walk Score® methodology

·nonstops

20

46% fewer than Pittsburgh

vs 37 nonstops in Pittsburgh

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