Moving to Virginia from Massachusetts
What to Expect
A comprehensive look at what changes when you move from Massachusetts to Virginia — from daily expenses to quality of life.
If you moved from Massachusetts to Virginia, you would find that Virginia is 2.4% cheaper than Massachusetts. A $75,000 salary in Massachusetts would need to be roughly $70,091 in Virginia to maintain the same lifestyle. Expect a noticeable climate shift — Richmond averages 70°F vs 59°F in Boston, making it significantly warmer.
How Far Will Your Money Go?
How your spending power changes when you relocate from Massachusetts to Virginia.
What does your salary buy?
$75,000 → $70,091
To maintain the same standard of living in Virginia
Calculate with your salary →The biggest cost differences at a glance
Restaurants
pay 2.3% less
Groceries
pay 7.8% more
Transportation
pay 1.5% more
Housing
pay 15.0% less
Childcare
pay 2.8% less
Entertainment and Sports
pay 9.1% 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 Virginia cost about 16% less than cities in Massachusetts.
Compare cities head-to-head
Key Indicator Comparison
How Massachusetts and Virginia 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
Massachusetts generally does better on safety, though Virginia leads in violent crime rate.
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
Massachusetts performs better than Virginia across all health & wellbeing metrics.
What about housing?
typical price of a home
typical monthly gross rent
share of homes that are owner-occupied
Virginia performs significantly better than Massachusetts across all what about housing? metrics.
Will I have good infrastructure?
share of households with internet
minutes each way to work
Massachusetts generally does better on infrastructure, though Virginia 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
Massachusetts generally does better on employment & economy, though Virginia leads in unemployment rate.
Is it good for families?
average years of life at birth
share of adults with a 4-year college degree
Massachusetts performs better than Virginia 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 | Boston | Richmond |
|---|---|---|
| Jan–Mar | 40°/26°F (4°/-3°C) | 53°/32°F (12°/0°C) |
| Apr–Jun | 66°/50°F (19°/10°C) | 78°/55°F (26°/13°C) |
| Jul–Sep | 78°/62°F (25°/17°C) | 86°/65°F (30°/19°C) |
| Oct–Dec | 51°/38°F (11°/3°C) | 61°/39°F (16°/4°C) |
View all months
| Month | Boston | Richmond |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 36°/22°F (2.1°/-5.4°C) | 47°/28°F (8.6°/-2.1°C) |
| Feb | 39°/25°F (3.7°/-4.1°C) | 51°/31°F (10.7°/-0.8°C) |
| Mar | 45°/31°F (7.4°/-0.5°C) | 60°/37°F (15.6°/2.8°C) |
| Apr | 56°/41°F (13.1°/4.8°C) | 70°/46°F (21.3°/7.8°C) |
| May | 66°/50°F (18.9°/9.9°C) | 78°/55°F (25.5°/12.8°C) |
| Jun | 76°/60°F (24.4°/15.3°C) | 86°/65°F (30.1°/18.1°C) |
| Jul | 81°/65°F (27.4°/18.6°C) | 90°/69°F (32.1°/20.5°C) |
| Aug | 80°/65°F (26.4°/18.1°C) | 88°/67°F (30.9°/19.7°C) |
| Sep | 72°/57°F (22.4°/14.1°C) | 81°/60°F (27.3°/15.6°C) |
| Oct | 61°/47°F (16.3°/8.1°C) | 71°/48°F (21.7°/9.1°C) |
| Nov | 51°/38°F (10.8°/3.3°C) | 61°/39°F (16.3°/4.1°C) |
| Dec | 41°/28°F (5.1°/-2.1°C) | 51°/31°F (10.4°/-0.3°C) |
Data:
National Weather Service
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it cheaper to live in Virginia than Massachusetts?
Generally yes: Virginia runs about 7% cheaper than Massachusetts on average, though it depends heavily on the city.
How much money do I need to move to Virginia?
A safe rule of thumb is 3 months of local expenses plus relocation costs. On a $75,000 comparable salary, that's around $17,523 in Virginia for everyday spending, before movers, a truck rental, and a rental deposit.
Is Virginia safe?
Massachusetts generally does better on safety, though Virginia leads in violent crime rate.
How is healthcare in Virginia compared to Massachusetts?
Massachusetts performs better than Virginia across all health & wellbeing metrics.
What's the weather like in Virginia compared to Massachusetts?
The average high temperature in Richmond is 70°F, compared to 59°F in Boston. Richmond receives around 43.6 in of rainfall per year, while Boston gets 43.8 in.
