US Cost-of-Living Calculator

[phk]

http://www.bestplaces.net/COL/

You can compare two cities on a variety of metrics that measure the cost of living differences (such as housing, utilities, etc.) and tells you what target salary you would need in the new city to match the standard of living you currently have . Pretty cool if you intentionally look for extreme results.

[12th Doctor]

I always marvel at how much lower the cost of living is here in Pittsburgh as compared to "boom cities".  It's not like we have less here to spend your money on.

[12th Doctor]

People always point out that you make less living in Pittsburgh.  Yes, you make about 20% less than you would working in D.C., Atlanta, or Miami, but things only cost about half as much.

[○∙◄☻¥tπ[╪AV┼cVê└]

It's always sad to compare salaries in the bay area to those of a low cost of living area. Salaries in the bay area are pretty terrible when you adjust for the cost of living. The problem too is that if you need twice as much after tax income, you need even more than twice as much pre-tax income, since you also pay a higher percentage in taxes. Basically the highest income tax for California starts at $40k (I know there's that 1% millionaire surcharge).