Moving to Ohio from South Carolina
What to Expect
Everything you need to know before relocating from South Carolina to Ohio — costs, safety, healthcare, and practical first steps.
If you moved from South Carolina to Ohio, you would find that Ohio is 12.9% cheaper than South Carolina. A $75,000 salary in South Carolina would need to be roughly $65,300 in Ohio to maintain the same lifestyle. Charleston and Columbus are about 520 mi apart.
Is Ohio cheaper than South Carolina?
Where you'll feel the difference day-to-day
Restaurants
pay 11.1% less
Groceries
pay 19.5% less
Transportation
pay 13.4% more
Housing
pay 24.4% less
Childcare
pay 3.4% more
Entertainment and Sports
pay 5.2% 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.
What salary do you need in Ohio?
What does your salary buy?
$75,000 → $65,300
To maintain the same standard of living in Ohio
Calculate with your salary →Key Indicator Comparison
Key indicators for anyone considering a move from South Carolina to Ohio.
Is it safe?
incidents per 100,000 people per year
incidents per 100,000 people per year
Ohio performs significantly 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 Ohio leads in uninsured rate.
What about housing?
typical price of a home
typical monthly gross rent
share of homes that are owner-occupied
Ohio 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
Ohio performs significantly 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
Ohio performs significantly better than South Carolina across all employment & economy metrics.
Is it good for families?
average years of life at birth
share of adults with a 4-year college degree
Ohio performs significantly better than South Carolina 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
Weather in Ohio vs South Carolina
Monthly averages — select a city to compare.
Avg. annual high / low
Avg. annual high / low
| Months | Charleston | Columbus |
|---|---|---|
| Jan–Mar | 61°/47°F (16°/8°C) | 63°/41°F (17°/5°C) |
| Apr–Jun | 79°/67°F (26°/19°C) | 84°/62°F (29°/16°C) |
| Jul–Sep | 85°/75°F (30°/24°C) | 90°/71°F (32°/21°C) |
| Oct–Dec | 67°/54°F (20°/12°C) | 68°/47°F (20°/8°C) |
View all months
| Month | Charleston | Columbus |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 57°/43°F (13.7°/6.0°C) | 58°/37°F (14.2°/2.7°C) |
| Feb | 60°/46°F (15.3°/7.5°C) | 62°/40°F (16.7°/4.5°C) |
| Mar | 65°/52°F (18.3°/10.9°C) | 69°/46°F (20.8°/7.8°C) |
| Apr | 72°/59°F (22.2°/14.9°C) | 77°/53°F (24.8°/11.4°C) |
| May | 79°/67°F (25.9°/19.5°C) | 84°/62°F (28.9°/16.6°C) |
| Jun | 85°/74°F (29.2°/23.3°C) | 90°/70°F (32.2°/20.9°C) |
| Jul | 88°/77°F (30.9°/24.9°C) | 92°/73°F (33.4°/22.7°C) |
| Aug | 86°/76°F (30.2°/24.5°C) | 91°/72°F (33.0°/22.4°C) |
| Sep | 82°/72°F (27.8°/22.1°C) | 86°/67°F (30.2°/19.3°C) |
| Oct | 75°/62°F (23.7°/16.9°C) | 77°/56°F (25.2°/13.1°C) |
| Nov | 67°/54°F (19.6°/12.0°C) | 68°/46°F (20.2°/7.8°C) |
| Dec | 60°/46°F (15.3°/7.6°C) | 59°/39°F (15.2°/3.8°C) |
Data:
National Weather Service
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it cheaper to live in Ohio than South Carolina?
Yes — Ohio is on average about 13% cheaper than South Carolina. City-level variation can be significant.
How much money do I need to move to Ohio?
Plan for at least 3 months of living expenses — roughly $16,325 in Ohio on a $75,000 comparable salary — plus one-off moving costs (movers, a truck rental, and a rental deposit).
Is Ohio safe?
Ohio performs significantly better than South Carolina across all safety metrics.
How is healthcare in Ohio compared to South Carolina?
South Carolina generally does better on health & wellbeing, though Ohio leads in uninsured rate.
What's the weather like in Ohio compared to South Carolina?
The average high temperature in Columbus is 76°F, compared to 73°F in Charleston. Columbus receives around 46.8 in of rainfall per year, while Charleston gets 44.4 in.
