same $100k income, fresh start from Birmingham
changea dispatch from
salt lake city
UT
40.76°N
111.89°W
Salt Lake City sits in a bowl of mountains so close you can be at a ski lift in 30 minutes. The grid is laid out from Temple Square in clean numbered streets that make navigation almost too easy. The Great Salt Lake glints west, the Wasatch towers east, and the city itself has loosened up into a real food and bar scene in the last decade. The powder really is that light.
in our guides
the verdict
pricier each month than Birmingham
Salt Lake City edges out a little pricier. Close enough that the decision rides on the days, not the dollars.
a quick ledger.
$1,608/mo
14% more expensive than Birmingham(vs $1,407/mo)
4.65%
$29/mo less in state tax than Birmingham
vs 5% in Birmingham
$6,338/mo
$172 less than Birmingham
gross of federal tax. a comparison, not a paycheck.
$584k
124% more expensive than Birmingham
vs $261k in Birmingham
1.3M
vs 1.2M in Birmingham
field notes, weather & such.
168
pleasant days a year, in salt lake city.
Birmingham has the edge here, logging 171 pleasant days a year. Cold snaps are part of the year: 33 days below 20° here, 4 in Birmingham.
But the calendar thins out: Birmingham stays 1.5× busier.
78/100
28% higher than Birmingham
vs 61/100 in Birmingham
Closest outdoor draw: Antelope Island State Park, 22 mi.
80/100
1% higher than Birmingham
vs 79/100 in Birmingham
90
350% more than Birmingham
vs 20 nonstops in Birmingham
neighbors of salt lake city on the map of tradeoffs:
compare salt lake city with:
