on $100k a year, leaving San Diego

change
Harrisburg, PA cityscape

swapping out of san diego

Harrisburg

pa · metro 606k

a dispatch from

harrisburg

PA

40.26°N

76.88°W

Harrisburg is the Pennsylvania state capital sitting on the Susquehanna River, with a gorgeous Beaux-Arts capitol building (Theodore Roosevelt called it the handsomest building he ever saw). City Island in the middle of the river is a small park with minor league baseball. Hershey is 15 minutes east (yes, that Hershey). Slower-paced than its metro neighbors.

metro606k

01 · the verdict

the verdict

$1,964

lighter monthly cost than San Diego

Harrisburg sits well below San Diego on cost. Same paycheck, a noticeably lighter month.
landable, recorded on the harrisburg entry

02 · the money

a quick ledger.

01rent

$1,446/mo

50% cheaper than San Diego(vs $2,890/mo)

02state income tax

3.07%

$519/mo less in state tax than San Diego

vs 9.3% in San Diego

03after rent

$6,632/mo

$1,964 more than San Diego

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

04a house here

$309k

69% cheaper than San Diego

vs $1010k in San Diego

05metro size

606k

vs 3.3M in San Diego

03 · the life

field notes, weather & such.

152

pleasant days a year, in harrisburg.

San Diego gets 332 pleasant days a year, so you'd be trading some sunshine. A real winter, not a brutal one: 33 days under 20°, vs 0 in San Diego.

But the calendar thins out: San Diego stays 5.3× busier.
on a typical month
·outdoorscore

69/100

8% lower than San Diego

vs 75/100 in San Diego

Closest outdoor draw: Gifford Pinchot State Park, 12.7 mi.

·walk score®

93/100

6% lower than San Diego

vs 99/100 in San Diego

Walk Score® methodology

·nonstops

12

78% fewer than San Diego

vs 55 nonstops in San Diego

04 · see also

in the same ballpark as harrisburg:

compare harrisburg with: