01 · the cities
San Francisco
San Francisco is hills, fog, Mission burritos the size of forearms, and pastel Victorians stacked like dominoes. Karl the Fog has his own Instagram, the cable cars are still mechanically pulled by cables running under the street, and the Pacific shows up at the end of every west-bound avenue. The food is wildly good, the views are theatrical, and yes, you'll get cardio just walking to the corner store.
full dispatch→Kingsport
Kingsport is a planned 'model city' built by the Eastman Chemical Company in the early 1900s, with a downtown laid out in deliberate grids and the company still dominating the local economy. It's in the Tri-Cities area (with Bristol and Johnson City), tucked into the Appalachian foothills. Bays Mountain Park and the South Fork Holston River give it strong outdoor access. Quietly orderly.
full dispatch→02 · the money
Median rent
Median rent
$3,146/mo
$1,383/mo
$1,763/mo less than San Francisco (127%)
Median home price
Median home price
$1.2M
$244k
$995k less than San Francisco
State income tax
State income tax
9.3%
0%
Gross left after rent
Gross left after rent
$4,412/mo
$6,950/mo
Kingsport has $2,538/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
312 days
188 days
124 fewer than San Francisco
Extreme heat days
Extreme heat days
0 days
1 days
days above 95°F per year
Extreme cold days
Extreme cold days
0 days
15 days
days below 20°F per year
Kingsport drops below 20°F on 15 more days per year than San Francisco.
04 · the life
OutdoorScore
OutdoorScore
83 / 100
59 / 100
24.0 pts behind San Francisco
Nonstop flights
Nonstop flights
111 routes
4 routes
107 fewer direct routes than San Francisco
Metro size
Metro size
4.6M metro
312k metro
San Francisco has 32.3x more events per month than Kingsport.
the verdict
4
San Francisco
categories won
4
Kingsport
categories won
San Francisco wins on weather and lifestyle, Kingsport wins on money. Dead even.
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