same $100k income, fresh start from Riverside

change
Cleveland, OH cityscape

swapping out of riverside

Cleveland

oh · metro 2.2M

photo: Stephen Leonardi / pexels

a dispatch from

cleveland

OH

41.50°N

81.69°W

Cleveland is the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, the West Side Market's 100+ years of pierogies and bratwurst, and Lake Erie sunsets that put the coastal hype to shame. The Cuyahoga River caught fire so many times it inspired the Clean Water Act. The Cleveland Orchestra is consistently ranked among the world's best. Summers on the lake are gorgeous, and the food scene is having a real moment.

metro2.2M

in our guides

#8

of 10

Best affordable cities to retire

read the guide
#10

of 10

Biggest cities you can actually afford

read the guide
#9

of 10

Best cities to leave New York for

read the guide
#3

of 10

Best cities to live in the Midwest

read the guide
#5

of 10

Best affordable coastal cities

read the guide
#9

of 10

Best cities to leave Boston for

read the guide
#4

of 10

Best affordable coastal cities for families

read the guide
#5

of 10

Best cities to leave DC for

read the guide
#3

of 10

Best cities in the Great Lakes region

read the guide
#10

of 10

Best cities for a $60k salary

read the guide
#10

of 10

Affordable alternatives to Boise

read the guide

01 · the verdict

the verdict

$1,517

lighter monthly cost than Riverside

Cleveland is the kind of cheap that changes the math. Same salary, a different life on the other side.
landable, recorded on the cleveland entry

02 · the money

a quick ledger.

01rent

$1,419/mo

43% cheaper than Riverside(vs $2,493/mo)

02state income tax

3.99%

$442/mo less in state tax than Riverside

vs 9.3% in Riverside

03after rent

$6,582/mo

$1,517 more than Riverside

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

04a house here

$252k

58% cheaper than Riverside

vs $595k in Riverside

05metro size

2.2M

vs 4.7M in Riverside

03 · the life

field notes, weather & such.

159

pleasant days a year, in cleveland.

Riverside has the edge here, logging 249 pleasant days a year. Winter shows up, though: 27 days below 20° vs Riverside's 0.

1367% more happening than in Riverside.
on a typical month
·outdoorscore

63/100

9% lower than Riverside

vs 69/100 in Riverside

Closest outdoor draw: Cuyahoga Valley National Park, 29.7 mi.

·walk score®

96/100

4% higher than Riverside

vs 92/100 in Riverside

Walk Score® methodology

·nonstops

56

300% more than Riverside

vs 14 nonstops in Riverside

04 · see also

neighbors of cleveland on the map of tradeoffs:

see also

st. louis

better park access

turn the page

see also

kansas city

better weather

turn the page

see also

pittsburgh

$23/mo cheaper

turn the page

compare cleveland with:

St. LouisKansas CityPittsburgh