Moving to Texas from Virginia
What to Expect
A comprehensive look at what changes when you move from Virginia to Texas — from daily expenses to quality of life.
If you moved from Virginia to Texas, you would find that Texas is 11.4% cheaper than Virginia. A $75,000 salary in Virginia would need to be roughly $63,188 in Texas to maintain the same lifestyle. Expect a noticeable climate shift — Austin averages 79°F vs 70°F in Richmond, making it significantly warmer.
How Far Will Your Money Go?
How your spending power changes when you relocate from Virginia to Texas.
What does your salary buy?
$75,000 → $63,188
To maintain the same standard of living in Texas
Calculate with your salary →The biggest cost differences at a glance
Restaurants
pay 8.3% less
Groceries
pay 21.1% less
Transportation
pay 4.0% less
Housing
pay 5.2% less
Childcare
pay 30.7% less
Entertainment and Sports
pay 10.5% 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 Texas cost about 11% less than cities in Virginia.
Compare cities head-to-head
Key Indicator Comparison
How Virginia and Texas 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 Texas 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 performs better than Texas across all health & wellbeing metrics.
What about housing?
typical price of a home
typical monthly gross rent
share of homes that are owner-occupied
Texas 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 Texas 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 generally does better on employment & economy, though Texas leads in gdp per capita.
Is it good for families?
average years of life at birth
share of adults with a 4-year college degree
Virginia performs better than Texas 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 | Austin |
|---|---|---|
| Jan–Mar | 53°/32°F (12°/0°C) | 65°/40°F (18°/5°C) |
| Apr–Jun | 78°/55°F (26°/13°C) | 85°/63°F (29°/17°C) |
| Jul–Sep | 86°/65°F (30°/19°C) | 93°/70°F (34°/21°C) |
| Oct–Dec | 61°/39°F (16°/4°C) | 71°/47°F (22°/8°C) |
View all months
| Month | Richmond | Austin |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 47°/28°F (8.6°/-2.1°C) | 61°/37°F (15.9°/2.9°C) |
| Feb | 51°/31°F (10.7°/-0.8°C) | 64°/39°F (17.6°/3.8°C) |
| Mar | 60°/37°F (15.6°/2.8°C) | 71°/45°F (21.6°/7.4°C) |
| Apr | 70°/46°F (21.3°/7.8°C) | 79°/55°F (25.9°/12.8°C) |
| May | 78°/55°F (25.5°/12.8°C) | 85°/64°F (29.7°/17.7°C) |
| Jun | 86°/65°F (30.1°/18.1°C) | 91°/70°F (32.8°/21.0°C) |
| Jul | 90°/69°F (32.1°/20.5°C) | 94°/72°F (34.7°/22.3°C) |
| Aug | 88°/67°F (30.9°/19.7°C) | 96°/72°F (35.4°/22.1°C) |
| Sep | 81°/60°F (27.3°/15.6°C) | 90°/67°F (32.3°/19.2°C) |
| Oct | 71°/48°F (21.7°/9.1°C) | 81°/57°F (27.3°/13.7°C) |
| Nov | 61°/39°F (16.3°/4.1°C) | 71°/47°F (21.4°/8.4°C) |
| Dec | 51°/31°F (10.4°/-0.3°C) | 62°/38°F (16.5°/3.4°C) |
Data:
National Weather Service
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it cheaper to live in Texas than Virginia?
Generally yes: Texas runs about 16% cheaper than Virginia on average, though it depends heavily on the city.
How much money do I need to move to Texas?
A safe rule of thumb is 3 months of local expenses plus relocation costs. On a $75,000 comparable salary, that's around $15,797 in Texas for everyday spending, before movers, a truck rental, and a rental deposit.
Is Texas safe?
Virginia performs better than Texas across all safety metrics.
How is healthcare in Texas compared to Virginia?
Virginia performs better than Texas across all health & wellbeing metrics.
What's the weather like in Texas compared to Virginia?
The average high temperature in Austin is 79°F, compared to 70°F in Richmond. Austin receives around 36.2 in of rainfall per year, while Richmond gets 43.6 in.
