01 · the cities
Bridgeport
Bridgeport is the largest city in Connecticut, sitting on Long Island Sound with a working harbor and a real waterfront. P.T. Barnum lived here and the city's museum still pays tribute to his weird genius. It's a quick train ride to New York, with much cheaper housing and proper New England summers. The food scene punches above its weight, with old-school Portuguese and Brazilian spots packed every weekend.
full dispatch→Birmingham
Birmingham was built on steel and reshaped by the civil rights movement, and you can feel both stories in the city. The Civil Rights Institute is essential, the food scene (Highlands Bar and Grill, Hot and Hot Fish Club, plenty more) is one of the most acclaimed in the South. The Vulcan statue, the largest cast-iron statue in the world, looks down on the city from Red Mountain. Younger than its reputation suggests.
full dispatch→02 · the money
Median rent
Median rent
$2,767/mo
$1,407/mo
$1,360/mo less than Bridgeport (97%)
Median home price
Median home price
$768k
$261k
$507k less than Bridgeport
State income tax
State income tax
5.5%
5.0%
Gross left after rent
Gross left after rent
$5,108/mo
$6,510/mo
Birmingham has $1,402/mo more gross after rent at $100k
Gross left after rent reflects state income tax but not federal, based on $100k salary. Enter your salary to find your ideal city.
03 · the weather
Pleasant days/yr
Pleasant days/yr
172 days
171 days
Extreme heat days
Extreme heat days
0 days
28 days
days above 95°F per year
Extreme cold days
Extreme cold days
15 days
4 days
days below 20°F per year
Birmingham has 28 more days above 95°F each year than Bridgeport. Bridgeport drops below 20°F on 11 more days per year than Birmingham.
04 · the life
OutdoorScore
OutdoorScore
64 / 100
61 / 100
3.0 pts behind Bridgeport
Nonstop flights
Nonstop flights
1 routes
20 routes
19 more direct routes than Bridgeport
Metro size
Metro size
952k metro
1.2M metro
Bridgeport has 12.9x fewer events per month than Birmingham.
the verdict
2
Bridgeport
categories won
6
Birmingham
categories won
Birmingham leads on money and wins overall.
run your numbers
How far does your Bridgeport salary go?
Enter your salary to see a full ranked list of cities where you would live better.
see your top citiesWe use a proprietary blend of data from the US Census, Zillow, Ticketmaster, and more.
Walk Score® is a trademark of Walk Score, a Redfin company. How Walk Score works