on $100k a year, leaving San Diego
changea dispatch from
durham
NC
35.99°N
78.90°W
Durham is Duke University, old tobacco warehouses turned into incredible restaurants and breweries (the American Tobacco Campus is a model for adaptive reuse), and a food scene that punches way above its size (multiple James Beard winners). Bull City pride runs deep. The Eno River and Duke Gardens are right in town. It's more diverse, weirder, and more interesting than outsiders expect.
the verdict
under San Diego, every month
Durham is the kind of cheap that changes the math. Same salary, a different life on the other side.
a quick ledger.
$1,684/mo
42% cheaper than San Diego(vs $2,890/mo)
4.5%
$400/mo less in state tax than San Diego
vs 9.3% in San Diego
$6,274/mo
$1,606 more than San Diego
gross of federal tax. a comparison, not a paycheck.
$415k
59% cheaper than San Diego
vs $1010k in San Diego
609k
vs 3.3M in San Diego
field notes, weather & such.
178
pleasant days a year, in durham.
San Diego gets 332 pleasant days a year, so you'd be trading some sunshine.
80% fewer events than San Diego. The pace eases up.
50/100
33% lower than San Diego
vs 75/100 in San Diego
Closest outdoor draw: William B. Umstead State Park, 10.9 mi.
80/100
19% lower than San Diego
vs 99/100 in San Diego
39
29% fewer than San Diego
vs 55 nonstops in San Diego
same energy as durham, different zip code:
compare durham with:
