with $100k coming in, swapping out of Phoenix

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Sarasota, FL cityscape

if you left phoenix

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.

metro262k

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01 · the verdict

the verdict

$174

more expensive each month than Phoenix

A small premium for Sarasota. Worth it only if the rest of the city earns it back.
landable, recorded on the sarasota entry

02 · the money

a quick ledger.

01rent

$2,121/mo

22% more expensive than Phoenix(vs $1,739/mo)

02state income tax

0%

$208/mo less in state tax than Phoenix

vs 2.5% in Phoenix

03after rent

$6,212/mo

$174 less than Phoenix

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

04a house here

$423k

8% cheaper than Phoenix

vs $458k in Phoenix

05metro size

262k

vs 5.1M in Phoenix

03 · the life

field notes, weather & such.

249

pleasant days a year, in sarasota.

Phoenix only manages 181 of those.

But the calendar thins out: Phoenix stays 66.3× busier.
on a typical month
·outdoorscore

59/100

11% lower than Phoenix

vs 66/100 in Phoenix

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

·walk score®

96/100

1% lower than Phoenix

vs 97/100 in Phoenix

Walk Score® methodology

·nonstops

6

93% fewer than Phoenix

vs 91 nonstops in Phoenix

04 · see also

cities that play in sarasota's register:

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