Moving to South Carolina from Kentucky
What to Expect
A comprehensive look at what changes when you move from Kentucky to South Carolina — from daily expenses to quality of life.
If you moved from Kentucky to South Carolina, you would find that South Carolina is 10.2% more expensive than Kentucky. A $75,000 salary in Kentucky would need to be roughly $85,726 in South Carolina to maintain the same lifestyle.
How Far Will Your Money Go?
How your spending power changes when you relocate from Kentucky to South Carolina.
What does your salary buy?
$75,000 → $85,726
To maintain the same standard of living in South Carolina
Calculate with your salary →The biggest cost differences at a glance
Restaurants
pay 16.9% more
Groceries
pay 19.9% more
Transportation
pay 4.9% more
Housing
pay 22.2% more
Childcare
pay 0.9% less
Entertainment and Sports
pay 3.9% more
Data: MyLifeElsewhere's crowdsourced cost of living database, with prices submitted and updated by users worldwide. Exchange rates are refreshed regularly from public sources.
Key Indicator Comparison
How Kentucky and South Carolina stack up on safety, healthcare, jobs, and infrastructure.
Is it safe?
incidents per 100,000 people per year
incidents per 100,000 people per year
Kentucky performs better than South Carolina 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
South Carolina generally does better on health & wellbeing, though Kentucky leads in uninsured rate.
What about housing?
typical price of a home
typical monthly gross rent
share of homes that are owner-occupied
Kentucky generally does better on what about housing?, though South Carolina leads in homeownership rate.
Will I have good infrastructure?
share of households with internet
minutes each way to work
Kentucky performs better than South Carolina across all infrastructure metrics.
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
Kentucky generally does better on employment & economy, though South Carolina leads in median household income.
Is it good for families?
average years of life at birth
share of adults with a 4-year college degree
South Carolina performs significantly better than Kentucky across all family life metrics.
Data: Bureau of Economic Analysis, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (PLACES), FBI Uniform Crime Reporting, OECD Regional Demography, US Census Bureau (American Community Survey)
What's the Climate Like?
Monthly averages — select a city to compare.
Avg. annual high / low
Avg. annual high / low
| Months | Bowling Green | Columbia |
|---|---|---|
| Jan–Mar | 52°/31°F (11°/-1°C) | 47°/28°F (8°/-2°C) |
| Apr–Jun | 78°/55°F (25°/13°C) | 76°/55°F (24°/13°C) |
| Jul–Sep | 87°/64°F (30°/18°C) | 86°/65°F (30°/18°C) |
| Oct–Dec | 59°/38°F (15°/3°C) | 55°/36°F (13°/2°C) |
View all months
| Month | Bowling Green | Columbia |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 45°/26°F (7.2°/-3.1°C) | 40°/22°F (4.3°/-5.3°C) |
| Feb | 50°/30°F (10.0°/-1.3°C) | 45°/26°F (7.2°/-3.3°C) |
| Mar | 60°/37°F (15.4°/2.8°C) | 56°/35°F (13.3°/1.7°C) |
| Apr | 70°/46°F (20.9°/7.6°C) | 67°/46°F (19.3°/7.6°C) |
| May | 78°/55°F (25.4°/12.8°C) | 75°/55°F (24.0°/12.9°C) |
| Jun | 86°/64°F (30.1°/17.7°C) | 85°/65°F (29.2°/18.1°C) |
| Jul | 89°/68°F (31.9°/19.9°C) | 90°/69°F (32.0°/20.4°C) |
| Aug | 89°/66°F (31.6°/18.9°C) | 88°/67°F (31.3°/19.6°C) |
| Sep | 82°/58°F (27.8°/14.4°C) | 80°/58°F (26.6°/14.5°C) |
| Oct | 71°/46°F (21.8°/7.9°C) | 68°/47°F (20.0°/8.1°C) |
| Nov | 59°/38°F (15.2°/3.1°C) | 55°/37°F (12.7°/2.6°C) |
| Dec | 48°/29°F (8.8°/-1.6°C) | 42°/25°F (5.6°/-3.8°C) |
Data:
National Weather Service
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it cheaper to live in South Carolina than Kentucky?
Day-to-day costs in South Carolina run about 14% higher than Kentucky on average; specific cities can swing further.
How much money do I need to move to South Carolina?
A safe rule of thumb is 3 months of local expenses plus relocation costs. On a $75,000 comparable salary, that's around $21,432 in South Carolina for everyday spending, before movers, a truck rental, and a rental deposit.
Is South Carolina safe?
Kentucky performs better than South Carolina across all safety metrics.
How is healthcare in South Carolina compared to Kentucky?
South Carolina generally does better on health & wellbeing, though Kentucky leads in uninsured rate.
What's the weather like in South Carolina compared to Kentucky?
The average high temperature in Columbia is 66°F, compared to 69°F in Bowling Green. Columbia receives around 46.3 in of rainfall per year, while Bowling Green gets 49.9 in.
