Moving to Virginia from West Virginia
What to Expect
A comprehensive look at what changes when you move from West Virginia to Virginia — from daily expenses to quality of life.
If you moved from West Virginia to Virginia, you would find that Virginia is 39.9% more expensive than West Virginia. A $75,000 salary in West Virginia would need to be roughly $104,128 in Virginia to maintain the same lifestyle.
How Far Will Your Money Go?
How your spending power changes when you relocate from West Virginia to Virginia.
What does your salary buy?
$75,000 → $104,128
To maintain the same standard of living in Virginia
Calculate with your salary →The biggest cost differences at a glance
Restaurants
pay 16.6% more
Groceries
pay 42.9% more
Transportation
pay 9.5% more
Housing
pay 33.9% more
Childcare
pay 2.3 times more
Entertainment and Sports
pay 30.1% 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.
Key Indicator Comparison
How West Virginia and Virginia 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
West Virginia generally does better on safety, though Virginia leads in violent crime rate.
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 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 Virginia across all what about housing? metrics.
Will I have good infrastructure?
share of households with internet
minutes each way to work
West Virginia generally does better on infrastructure, though Virginia leads in internet access.
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 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
Virginia performs significantly better than West Virginia 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 | Charleston | Richmond |
|---|---|---|
| Jan–Mar | 61°/47°F (16°/8°C) | 53°/32°F (12°/0°C) |
| Apr–Jun | 79°/67°F (26°/19°C) | 78°/55°F (26°/13°C) |
| Jul–Sep | 85°/75°F (30°/24°C) | 86°/65°F (30°/19°C) |
| Oct–Dec | 67°/54°F (20°/12°C) | 61°/39°F (16°/4°C) |
View all months
| Month | Charleston | Richmond |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 57°/43°F (13.7°/6.0°C) | 47°/28°F (8.6°/-2.1°C) |
| Feb | 60°/46°F (15.3°/7.5°C) | 51°/31°F (10.7°/-0.8°C) |
| Mar | 65°/52°F (18.3°/10.9°C) | 60°/37°F (15.6°/2.8°C) |
| Apr | 72°/59°F (22.2°/14.9°C) | 70°/46°F (21.3°/7.8°C) |
| May | 79°/67°F (25.9°/19.5°C) | 78°/55°F (25.5°/12.8°C) |
| Jun | 85°/74°F (29.2°/23.3°C) | 86°/65°F (30.1°/18.1°C) |
| Jul | 88°/77°F (30.9°/24.9°C) | 90°/69°F (32.1°/20.5°C) |
| Aug | 86°/76°F (30.2°/24.5°C) | 88°/67°F (30.9°/19.7°C) |
| Sep | 82°/72°F (27.8°/22.1°C) | 81°/60°F (27.3°/15.6°C) |
| Oct | 75°/62°F (23.7°/16.9°C) | 71°/48°F (21.7°/9.1°C) |
| Nov | 67°/54°F (19.6°/12.0°C) | 61°/39°F (16.3°/4.1°C) |
| Dec | 60°/46°F (15.3°/7.6°C) | 51°/31°F (10.4°/-0.3°C) |
Data:
National Weather Service
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it cheaper to live in Virginia than West Virginia?
Day-to-day costs in Virginia run about 39% higher than West Virginia on average; specific cities can swing further.
How much money do I need to move to Virginia?
A safe rule of thumb is 3 months of local expenses plus relocation costs. On a $75,000 comparable salary, that's around $26,032 in Virginia for everyday spending, before movers, a truck rental, and a rental deposit.
Is Virginia safe?
West Virginia generally does better on safety, though Virginia leads in violent crime rate.
How is healthcare in Virginia compared to West Virginia?
Virginia generally does better on health & wellbeing, though West Virginia leads in uninsured rate.
What's the weather like in Virginia compared to West Virginia?
The average high temperature in Richmond is 70°F, compared to 73°F in Charleston. Richmond receives around 43.6 in of rainfall per year, while Charleston gets 44.4 in.
