Charleston vs Charlotte
The short version
- Charlotte is cheaper overall: prices in its metro run 4% lower than in the Charleston area (BEA 2024).
- The median home costs $385,700 in Charlotte and $509,700 in Charleston.
- Households earn more in Charleston ($92,414 vs $82,068 median).
- Charleston has the warmer winter: January highs of 60°F vs 52°F.
- Charlotte is growing faster: +10.3% since 2020 vs +5.8%.
Side by side
| Charleston, SC | Charlotte, NC | |
|---|---|---|
| People | ||
| Population (2025) | 159,423 | 964,784 |
| Growth since 2020 | +5.8% | +10.3% |
| People per square mile | 1,383 | 3,096 |
| Median age | 36.6 | 34.5 |
| Bachelor's degree or higher | 58% | 48% |
| Money and housing | ||
| Median household income | $92,414 | $82,068 |
| Median home value | $509,700 | $385,700 |
| Home value to income | 5.5× | 4.7× |
| Median rent (with utilities) | $1,722 | $1,612 |
| Metro price level (US = 100) | 101.0 | 97.3 |
| Housing price level (US = 100) | 119.8 | 97.6 |
| $75,000 elsewhere equals | $75,700 | $73,000 |
| Homeowners | 56% | 51% |
| Top state income tax | 6% | 3.99% |
| Combined sales tax | 7.49% | 7.1% |
| Work and commute | ||
| Average commute (minutes) | 24.2 | 24.7 |
| Work from home | 19% | 29% |
| Take public transit | 1% | 2% |
| Unemployment (2020-24 avg) | 3.4% | 4.6% |
| Poverty rate | 12.3% | 11.7% |
| Weather | ||
| January high / low | 60° / 39° | 52° / 32° |
| July high / low | 91° / 74° | 90° / 70° |
| Precipitation per year | 53 in | 44 in |
| Snowfall per year | 0 in | 4 in |
| Days 90°F or hotter | 64 | 49 |
| Nights below freezing | 22 | 58 |
| Comfortable months | 5 | 4 |
| Risks, air and home prices | ||
| Natural hazard risk (FEMA, county) | Relatively High | Relatively High |
| FEMA risk score (lower is safer) | 98.6 | 97.1 |
| Good air days, 2025 | 60% | 46% |
| Home prices, past year | +4.7% | +1.5% |
| Home prices, past 5 years | +61.6% | +49.9% |
Highlighted cells are the better value where "better" is clear (lower prices, higher income, shorter commutes). Sources: Census Bureau 2025 estimates and ACS 2020-2024, BEA 2024, NOAA 1991-2020, Tax Foundation 2026.
Weather, month by month
Most comfortable months: Charleston: March to May and October to November. Charlotte: April to May and September to October.
Full monthly tables: Charleston weather by month and Charlotte weather by month.
What $75,000 is worth
A $75,000 salary in an average-priced US city buys about the same as $75,700 in Charleston and $73,000 in Charlotte. Moving from Charleston to Charlotte, you would need about $72,300 to match a $75,000 salary.
Moving between Charleston and Charlotte
IRS county-to-county migration, 2022 to 2023 tax years, for the counties that contain each city. See where else people move from Charleston and Charlotte.
Which would you pick?
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