$100k a year, no longer in Trenton

change
Sarasota, FL cityscape

from trenton

Sarasota

fl · metro 262k

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

01 · the verdict

the verdict

$949

less monthly outlay than Trenton

Sarasota is the kind of cheap that changes the math. Same salary, a different life on the other side.
landable, recorded on the sarasota entry

02 · the money

a quick ledger.

01rent

$2,121/mo

16% cheaper than Trenton(vs $2,540/mo)

02state income tax

0%

$531/mo less in state tax than Trenton

vs 6.37% in Trenton

03after rent

$6,212/mo

$949 more than Trenton

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

04a house here

$423k

7% cheaper than Trenton

vs $456k in Trenton

05metro size

262k

vs 382k in Trenton

03 · the life

field notes, weather & such.

249

pleasant days a year, in sarasota.

Trenton only manages 171 of those.

But the calendar thins out: Trenton stays 3.7× busier.
on a typical month
·outdoorscore

59/100

17% lower than Trenton

vs 71/100 in Trenton

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

·walk score®

96/100

9% higher than Trenton

vs 88/100 in Trenton

Walk Score® methodology

·nonstops

6

95% fewer than Trenton

vs 123 nonstops in Trenton

04 · see also

cities that play in sarasota's register:

compare sarasota with: