Moving to Alabama from West Virginia
What to Expect
Everything you need to know before relocating from West Virginia to Alabama — costs, safety, healthcare, and practical first steps.
If you moved from West Virginia to Alabama, you would find that Alabama is 3.0% more expensive than West Virginia. A $75,000 salary in West Virginia would need to be roughly $77,200 in Alabama to maintain the same lifestyle. Charleston and Huntsville are about 370 mi apart.
Is Alabama cheaper than West Virginia?
Where you'll feel the difference day-to-day
Restaurants
pay 7.1% more
Groceries
pay 5.3% less
Transportation
pay 0.1% less
Housing
pay 4.0% more
Childcare
pay 9.8% more
Entertainment and Sports
pay 13.3% more
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 Alabama?
What does your salary buy?
$75,000 → $77,200
To maintain the same standard of living in Alabama
Calculate with your salary →Key Indicator Comparison
Key indicators for anyone considering a move from West Virginia to Alabama.
Is it safe?
incidents per 100,000 people per year
incidents per 100,000 people per year
West Virginia performs better than Alabama 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
Alabama generally does better on health & wellbeing, though West Virginia leads in uninsured rate.
What about housing?
typical price of a home
typical monthly gross rent
share of homes that are owner-occupied
West Virginia performs better than Alabama across all what about housing? metrics.
Will I have good infrastructure?
share of households with internet
minutes each way to work
Alabama performs significantly better than West Virginia 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
Alabama performs significantly better than West Virginia 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
Alabama performs significantly better than West Virginia 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 Alabama vs West Virginia
Monthly averages — select a city to compare.
Avg. annual high / low
Avg. annual high / low
| Months | Charleston | Huntsville |
|---|---|---|
| Jan–Mar | 61°/47°F (16°/8°C) | 57°/36°F (14°/2°C) |
| Apr–Jun | 79°/67°F (26°/19°C) | 81°/59°F (27°/15°C) |
| Jul–Sep | 85°/75°F (30°/24°C) | 89°/67°F (32°/20°C) |
| Oct–Dec | 67°/54°F (20°/12°C) | 64°/42°F (18°/6°C) |
View all months
| Month | Charleston | Huntsville |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 57°/43°F (13.7°/6.0°C) | 51°/32°F (10.7°/-0.1°C) |
| Feb | 60°/46°F (15.3°/7.5°C) | 56°/35°F (13.3°/1.9°C) |
| Mar | 65°/52°F (18.3°/10.9°C) | 65°/42°F (18.3°/5.7°C) |
| Apr | 72°/59°F (22.2°/14.9°C) | 74°/50°F (23.1°/10.0°C) |
| May | 79°/67°F (25.9°/19.5°C) | 81°/59°F (27.4°/15.2°C) |
| Jun | 85°/74°F (29.2°/23.3°C) | 88°/67°F (31.2°/19.5°C) |
| Jul | 88°/77°F (30.9°/24.9°C) | 91°/70°F (32.6°/21.3°C) |
| Aug | 86°/76°F (30.2°/24.5°C) | 91°/69°F (32.7°/20.8°C) |
| Sep | 82°/72°F (27.8°/22.1°C) | 85°/62°F (29.4°/16.9°C) |
| Oct | 75°/62°F (23.7°/16.9°C) | 75°/51°F (23.7°/10.6°C) |
| Nov | 67°/54°F (19.6°/12.0°C) | 64°/42°F (17.6°/5.4°C) |
| Dec | 60°/46°F (15.3°/7.6°C) | 53°/34°F (11.9°/1.3°C) |
Data:
National Weather Service
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it cheaper to live in Alabama than West Virginia?
No — Alabama is on average about 3% more expensive than West Virginia. City-level variation matters.
How much money do I need to move to Alabama?
Plan for at least 3 months of living expenses — roughly $19,300 in Alabama on a $75,000 comparable salary — plus one-off moving costs (movers, a truck rental, and a rental deposit).
Is Alabama safe?
West Virginia performs better than Alabama across all safety metrics.
How is healthcare in Alabama compared to West Virginia?
Alabama generally does better on health & wellbeing, though West Virginia leads in uninsured rate.
What's the weather like in Alabama compared to West Virginia?
The average high temperature in Huntsville is 73°F, compared to 73°F in Charleston. Huntsville receives around 54.3 in of rainfall per year, while Charleston gets 44.4 in.
