Philadelphia, PA · Washington, DC
Philadelphia is 52% cheaper than Washington overall.
Home Price
Philadelphia: $265,000
Washington: $575,000
Monthly Rent
Philadelphia: $1,350/mo
Washington: $2,195/mo
COL Index
Philadelphia: 101
Washington: 154
Median Income
Philadelphia: $54,800
Washington: $98,700
Median Home Price
Monthly Rent (Median)
Median Household Income
Property Tax Rate
Cost of Living Index
100 = national average
Avg. Commute
Unemployment Rate
Median Age
A $100,000 salary in Philadelphia has the same purchasing power as $152,475 in Washington — based on each city's cost of living index.
Homes in Washington are 117% cheaper (-$310,000 less). That's a significant down payment and monthly payment difference.
Renting in Philadelphia saves you $845/month — $10,140 per year. Median rent: $1,350/mo in Philadelphia vs $2,195/mo in Washington.
On a median-priced home, Philadelphia owners pay roughly $3,710/year in property taxes vs $3,278/year in Washington. That's a $433 annual difference.
Median household income is $54,800 in Philadelphia and $98,700 in Washington. Philadelphia residents earn 80% more — but remember to factor in cost of living.
Average commute is 30 minutes in Philadelphia vs 34 minutes in Washington. Commute times are nearly identical.
To maintain the same lifestyle when moving from Philadelphia to Washington, here's the salary you'd need:
| Salary in Philadelphia | Equivalent in Washington | Difference |
|---|---|---|
| $50,000 | $76,238 | +$26,238 |
| $75,000 | $114,356 | +$39,356 |
| $100,000 | $152,475 | +$52,475 |
| $150,000 | $228,713 | +$78,713 |
| $200,000 | $304,950 | +$104,950 |
* Calculated using cost of living indices (national average = 100). Does not account for state income tax differences.
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Cost of Living
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Based on cost of living indices, Philadelphia is cheaper overall. Philadelphia has a COL index of 101 while Washington scores 154 (national average = 100).
The median home price in Philadelphia is $265,000 vs $575,000 in Washington — a difference of $310,000 (117%).
Use the salary equivalence table above. For example, a $100K salary in Philadelphia is equivalent to $152,475 in Washington in terms of purchasing power.
Washington has a lower property tax rate (0.57% vs 1.4%). On a median-priced home, that means paying $3,278/year vs $3,710/year.
Median monthly rent: $1,350 in Philadelphia vs $2,195 in Washington. Annualized: $16,200 vs $26,340.
Philadelphia: $54,800/yr. Washington: $98,700/yr (Census ACS).
Lower-cost Philadelphia typically lets remote-workers keeping a coastal salary stretch further. Higher-cost cities usually win on amenities and labor-market depth.
Numbers are pulled from Zillow ZHVI/ZORI (home values, rent), the U.S. Census Bureau ACS (income), and BEA RPP (cost-of-living index). Each value is timestamped on the page.
Source feeds refresh on their native cadence — hourly for mortgage rates, monthly for ZHVI/ZORI, annually for ACS. Page caches revalidate every 24 hours via Next.js ISR.
No. This page is educational reference using public data and standard formulas. It is not personalized tax, legal, or investment advice. Consult a licensed professional for material decisions.
City-level metrics (median home price, median rent, median household income, property tax rate, COL index, commute, unemployment, median age) are sourced from Zillow ZHVI/ZORI[1], Census ACS 5-year estimates[2], BEA Regional Price Parities[3], Tax Foundation[4], and BLS Local Area Unemployment Statistics[5].
The Cost of Living Index uses 100 = national average (C2ER methodology[6]): values above 100 indicate a city is more expensive than the national average, below 100 less expensive.
Salary equivalence uses the ratio adjustedSalary = salary × (colDestination / colOrigin). This accounts for cost-of-living differences but does not model state income tax variation, which can be significant.
Annual property tax is computed as medianHomePrice × propertyTaxRate. Actual assessed value may differ from sale price. Effective rates vary within a metro; these are metro-wide medians.
Commute-hours calculations assume 250 working days/year and a round-trip commute. "Tied" in the comparison table means values within ±1% of each other.
Last reviewed reflects the maximum retrievedAt timestamp across every sourced dataset feeding this page. When any source refreshes, the next ISR revalidation (every 24 hours) picks the new date.
Cost of living data sourced from [6] C2ER, [2] U.S. Census Bureau, and [1] Zillow Research. Tax rates from [4] Tax Foundation. Last reviewed .