on $100k a year, leaving Madison

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Sarasota, FL cityscape

from madison

Sarasota

fl · metro 262k

photo: Jeffrey Eisen / pexels

a dispatch from

sarasota

FL

27.34°N

82.54°W

Sarasota is the home of the Ringling Brothers Circus (the museum is wild, and yes, there's a vintage clown college history), and Siesta Key's beach is regularly named the best in America for its pure quartz sand. The cultural scene is heavy for a Florida city of its size (theater, opera, art museum). Gulf sunsets here are the brochure shot. The food scene has caught up to the city's wealth and the retirees' time.

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01 · the verdict

the verdict

$74

under Madison, every month

Cost barely budges between Sarasota and Madison. Pick this one for the texture of the days, not the math.
landable, recorded on the sarasota entry

02 · the money

a quick ledger.

01rent

$2,121/mo

27% more expensive than Madison(vs $1,673/mo)

02state income tax

0%

$523/mo less in state tax than Madison

vs 6.27% in Madison

03after rent

$6,212/mo

$74 more than Madison

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

04a house here

$423k

9% cheaper than Madison

vs $465k in Madison

05metro size

262k

vs 694k in Madison

03 · the life

field notes, weather & such.

249

pleasant days a year, in sarasota.

Madison barely cracks 147 pleasant ones.

But the calendar thins out: Madison stays 13.3× busier.
on a typical month
·outdoorscore

59/100

12% lower than Madison

vs 67/100 in Madison

Closest outdoor draw: Myakka River State Park, 15.9 mi.

·walk score®

96/100

9% higher than Madison

vs 88/100 in Madison

Walk Score® methodology

·nonstops

6

45% fewer than Madison

vs 11 nonstops in Madison

04 · see also

same energy as sarasota, different zip code:

see also

myrtle beach

more flight options

turn the page

see also

wilmington

$71/mo cheaper

turn the page

see also

pensacola

$369/mo cheaper

turn the page

compare sarasota with:

Myrtle BeachWilmingtonPensacola