Moving to Alabama from California
What to Expect
Everything you need to know before relocating from California to Alabama — costs, safety, healthcare, and practical first steps.
If you moved from California to Alabama, you would find that Alabama is 31.2% cheaper than California. A $75,000 salary in California would need to be roughly $51,600 in Alabama to maintain the same lifestyle.
How Far Will Your Money Go?
What to expect for your wallet after moving from California to Alabama.
What does your salary buy?
$75,000 → $51,600
To maintain the same standard of living in Alabama
Calculate with your salary →Where you'll feel the difference day-to-day
Restaurants
pay 16.9% less
Groceries
pay 22.7% less
Transportation
pay 20.9% less
Housing
pay 47.3% less
Childcare
pay 28.0% less
Entertainment and Sports
pay 20.5% less
Data: MyLifeElsewhere's crowdsourced cost of living database, with prices submitted and updated by users worldwide. Exchange rates are refreshed regularly from public sources.
Cost of living by city
Cost of living varies a lot by city. Each figure is a city's overall cost of living as a percentage of New York City (the priciest, = 100%).
On average, cities in Alabama cost about 32% less than cities in California.
Compare cities head-to-head
Key Indicator Comparison
Key indicators for anyone considering a move from California to Alabama.
Is it safe?
incidents per 100,000 people per year
incidents per 100,000 people per year
Alabama performs significantly better than California across all safety metrics.
How's the healthcare?
share of people without health insurance
share of adults with obesity
share of adults with diabetes
share of adults who smoke
California performs better than Alabama across all health & wellbeing metrics.
What about housing?
typical price of a home
typical monthly gross rent
share of homes that are owner-occupied
Alabama performs significantly better than California across all what about housing? metrics.
Will I have good infrastructure?
share of households with internet
minutes each way to work
California generally does better on infrastructure, though Alabama leads in average commute.
What are the job prospects?
percentage of the labour force without work
a broad measure of economic output per person
typical annual income of a household
share of people below the poverty line
California generally does better on employment & economy, though Alabama leads in unemployment rate.
Is it good for families?
average years of life at birth
share of adults with a 4-year college degree
California performs better than Alabama across all family life metrics.
Sources: US Census Bureau (American Community Survey) (2023), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (PLACES) (2022), FBI Uniform Crime Reporting (2023), Bureau of Labor Statistics (2025), Bureau of Economic Analysis (2024), OECD Regional Demography (2020). How we calculate this
What's the Climate Like?
Monthly averages — select a city to compare.
Avg. annual high / low
Avg. annual high / low
| Months | Sacramento | Montgomery |
|---|---|---|
| Jan–Mar | 60°/41°F (15°/5°C) | 63°/40°F (17°/4°C) |
| Apr–Jun | 79°/51°F (26°/11°C) | 84°/60°F (29°/16°C) |
| Jul–Sep | 90°/57°F (32°/14°C) | 90°/69°F (32°/21°C) |
| Oct–Dec | 65°/44°F (18°/7°C) | 69°/45°F (21°/7°C) |
View all months
| Month | Sacramento | Montgomery |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 54°/39°F (12.1°/3.8°C) | 57°/36°F (14.1°/2.1°C) |
| Feb | 60°/41°F (15.7°/5.2°C) | 62°/39°F (16.6°/4.0°C) |
| Mar | 65°/44°F (18.4°/6.7°C) | 70°/45°F (20.9°/7.4°C) |
| Apr | 71°/46°F (21.7°/7.9°C) | 77°/52°F (24.8°/10.9°C) |
| May | 80°/51°F (26.6°/10.6°C) | 84°/61°F (28.9°/15.9°C) |
| Jun | 87°/56°F (30.6°/13.2°C) | 90°/68°F (32.1°/20.1°C) |
| Jul | 92°/58°F (33.4°/14.7°C) | 92°/71°F (33.4°/21.9°C) |
| Aug | 91°/58°F (32.9°/14.4°C) | 92°/71°F (33.3°/21.7°C) |
| Sep | 87°/56°F (30.7°/13.2°C) | 87°/65°F (30.7°/18.4°C) |
| Oct | 78°/50°F (25.3°/10.1°C) | 78°/53°F (25.7°/11.9°C) |
| Nov | 64°/43°F (17.7°/6.0°C) | 69°/44°F (20.6°/6.6°C) |
| Dec | 54°/38°F (12.2°/3.6°C) | 60°/37°F (15.3°/3.0°C) |
Data:
National Weather Service
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it cheaper to live in Alabama than California?
Yes — Alabama is on average about 31% cheaper than California. City-level variation can be significant.
How much money do I need to move to Alabama?
Plan for at least 3 months of living expenses — roughly $12,900 in Alabama on a $75,000 comparable salary — plus one-off moving costs (movers, a truck rental, and a rental deposit).
Is Alabama safe?
Alabama performs significantly better than California across all safety metrics.
How is healthcare in Alabama compared to California?
California performs better than Alabama across all health & wellbeing metrics.
What's the weather like in Alabama compared to California?
The average high temperature in Montgomery is 76°F, compared to 74°F in Sacramento. Montgomery receives around 53.1 in of rainfall per year, while Sacramento gets 18.5 in.
