Moving to Kentucky from Virginia
What to Expect
A comprehensive look at what changes when you move from Virginia to Kentucky — from daily expenses to quality of life.
If you moved from Virginia to Kentucky, you would find that Kentucky is 21.4% cheaper than Virginia. A $75,000 salary in Virginia would need to be roughly $58,900 in Kentucky to maintain the same lifestyle. Virginia Beach and Louisville are about 540 mi apart.
Thinking of moving to Kentucky? Get a shortlist of towns in Kentucky that match your priorities: size, cost, taxes, safety, disaster risk, hospitals and transport. Find my towns →Is Kentucky cheaper than Virginia?
The biggest cost differences at a glance
Restaurants
pay 24.3% less
Groceries
pay 17.0% less
Transportation
pay 15.2% less
Housing
pay 27.5% less
Childcare
pay 23.0% less
Entertainment and Sports
pay 21.8% 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 Kentucky?
What does your salary buy?
$75,000 → $58,900
To maintain the same standard of living in Kentucky
Calculate with your salary →Key Indicator Comparison
How Virginia and Kentucky 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 significantly better than Virginia 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
Virginia 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 performs significantly better than Virginia across all what about housing? metrics.
Will I have good infrastructure?
share of households with internet
minutes each way to work
Virginia generally does better on infrastructure, though Kentucky 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
Virginia performs better than Kentucky 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
Virginia performs better than Kentucky 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 Kentucky vs Virginia
Monthly averages — select a city to compare.
Avg. annual high / low
Avg. annual high / low
| Months | Richmond | Louisville |
|---|---|---|
| Jan–Mar | 53°/32°F (12°/0°C) | 50°/32°F (10°/0°C) |
| Apr–Jun | 78°/55°F (26°/13°C) | 77°/57°F (25°/14°C) |
| Jul–Sep | 86°/65°F (30°/19°C) | 86°/66°F (30°/19°C) |
| Oct–Dec | 61°/39°F (16°/4°C) | 58°/40°F (14°/4°C) |
View all months
| Month | Richmond | Louisville |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 47°/28°F (8.6°/-2.1°C) | 43°/27°F (6.1°/-2.9°C) |
| Feb | 51°/31°F (10.7°/-0.8°C) | 48°/30°F (8.8°/-1.2°C) |
| Mar | 60°/37°F (15.6°/2.8°C) | 58°/38°F (14.4°/3.2°C) |
| Apr | 70°/46°F (21.3°/7.8°C) | 69°/47°F (20.4°/8.5°C) |
| May | 78°/55°F (25.5°/12.8°C) | 77°/57°F (25.1°/13.9°C) |
| Jun | 86°/65°F (30.1°/18.1°C) | 85°/66°F (29.6°/18.9°C) |
| Jul | 90°/69°F (32.1°/20.5°C) | 89°/70°F (31.5°/21.1°C) |
| Aug | 88°/67°F (30.9°/19.7°C) | 88°/69°F (31.3°/20.3°C) |
| Sep | 81°/60°F (27.3°/15.6°C) | 82°/60°F (27.5°/15.8°C) |
| Oct | 71°/48°F (21.7°/9.1°C) | 70°/49°F (21.2°/9.4°C) |
| Nov | 61°/39°F (16.3°/4.1°C) | 58°/40°F (14.4°/4.2°C) |
| Dec | 51°/31°F (10.4°/-0.3°C) | 46°/30°F (7.7°/-1.1°C) |
Data:
National Weather Service
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it cheaper to live in Kentucky than Virginia?
Generally yes: Kentucky runs about 21% cheaper than Virginia on average, though it depends heavily on the city.
How much money do I need to move to Kentucky?
A safe rule of thumb is 3 months of local expenses plus relocation costs. On a $75,000 comparable salary, that's around $14,725 in Kentucky for everyday spending, before movers, a truck rental, and a rental deposit.
Is Kentucky safe?
Kentucky performs significantly better than Virginia across all safety metrics.
How is healthcare in Kentucky compared to Virginia?
Virginia generally does better on health & wellbeing, though Kentucky leads in uninsured rate.
What's the weather like in Kentucky compared to Virginia?
The average high temperature in Louisville is 68°F, compared to 70°F in Richmond. Louisville receives around 44.9 in of rainfall per year, while Richmond gets 43.6 in.
