Moving to North Carolina from Virginia
What to Expect
A comprehensive look at what changes when you move from Virginia to North Carolina — from daily expenses to quality of life.
If you moved from Virginia to North Carolina, you would find that North Carolina is 9.1% cheaper than Virginia. A $75,000 salary in Virginia would need to be roughly $67,952 in North Carolina to maintain the same lifestyle.
How Far Will Your Money Go?
How your spending power changes when you relocate from Virginia to North Carolina.
What does your salary buy?
$75,000 → $67,952
To maintain the same standard of living in North Carolina
Calculate with your salary →The biggest cost differences at a glance
Restaurants
pay 13.1% less
Groceries
pay 6.0% less
Transportation
pay 0.1% more
Housing
pay 6.0% less
Childcare
pay 20.5% less
Entertainment and Sports
pay 12.3% 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 North Carolina cost about 3% less than cities in Virginia.
Compare cities head-to-head
Key Indicator Comparison
How Virginia and North 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
Virginia performs better than North 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
Virginia generally does better on health & wellbeing, though North Carolina leads in adult obesity rate.
What about housing?
typical price of a home
typical monthly gross rent
share of homes that are owner-occupied
North Carolina generally does better on what about housing?, though Virginia leads in homeownership rate.
Will I have good infrastructure?
share of households with internet
minutes each way to work
Virginia generally does better on infrastructure, though North Carolina 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 North 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
Virginia performs better than North Carolina 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 | Richmond | Asheville |
|---|---|---|
| Jan–Mar | 53°/32°F (12°/0°C) | 52°/32°F (11°/0°C) |
| Apr–Jun | 78°/55°F (26°/13°C) | 75°/53°F (24°/12°C) |
| Jul–Sep | 86°/65°F (30°/19°C) | 82°/62°F (28°/17°C) |
| Oct–Dec | 61°/39°F (16°/4°C) | 58°/38°F (15°/3°C) |
View all months
| Month | Richmond | Asheville |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 47°/28°F (8.6°/-2.1°C) | 47°/28°F (8.1°/-2.4°C) |
| Feb | 51°/31°F (10.7°/-0.8°C) | 50°/31°F (10.2°/-0.6°C) |
| Mar | 60°/37°F (15.6°/2.8°C) | 58°/37°F (14.4°/2.9°C) |
| Apr | 70°/46°F (21.3°/7.8°C) | 67°/45°F (19.7°/7.3°C) |
| May | 78°/55°F (25.5°/12.8°C) | 75°/53°F (23.9°/11.7°C) |
| Jun | 86°/65°F (30.1°/18.1°C) | 82°/61°F (27.6°/16.1°C) |
| Jul | 90°/69°F (32.1°/20.5°C) | 85°/65°F (29.3°/18.1°C) |
| Aug | 88°/67°F (30.9°/19.7°C) | 84°/64°F (28.7°/17.7°C) |
| Sep | 81°/60°F (27.3°/15.6°C) | 77°/57°F (25.1°/13.8°C) |
| Oct | 71°/48°F (21.7°/9.1°C) | 68°/46°F (19.9°/7.9°C) |
| Nov | 61°/39°F (16.3°/4.1°C) | 58°/38°F (14.7°/3.1°C) |
| Dec | 51°/31°F (10.4°/-0.3°C) | 49°/30°F (9.4°/-0.9°C) |
Data:
National Weather Service
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it cheaper to live in North Carolina than Virginia?
Generally yes: North Carolina runs about 9% cheaper than Virginia on average, though it depends heavily on the city.
How much money do I need to move to North Carolina?
A safe rule of thumb is 3 months of local expenses plus relocation costs. On a $75,000 comparable salary, that's around $16,988 in North Carolina for everyday spending, before movers, a truck rental, and a rental deposit.
Is North Carolina safe?
Virginia performs better than North Carolina across all safety metrics.
How is healthcare in North Carolina compared to Virginia?
Virginia generally does better on health & wellbeing, though North Carolina leads in adult obesity rate.
What's the weather like in North Carolina compared to Virginia?
The average high temperature in Asheville is 67°F, compared to 70°F in Richmond. Asheville receives around 37.0 in of rainfall per year, while Richmond gets 43.6 in.
