COMPARE COST OF LIVING

Wake County, NC→District of Columbia, DC

Equivalent salary in District of Columbia, DC

$52,740

+5.48% higher

Current salary: $50,000

Household: 1 adult · 0 children

This estimate matches your purchasing power (equivalent salary) when moving from Wake County, NC to District of Columbia, DC.

Cost of Living Breakdown by Category

Summary/TLDR:

If you were to move to District of Columbia, DC from Wake County, NC would be, though moderately, more expensive overall. You would spend an estimated additional $3,243 per year (a 5.48% increase). To keep the same lifestyle, you’d likely want your income to be at least 5.48% higher in this new location. Moving can lead to some savings in Transport According to the Economic Policy Institute’s 2025 Family Budget data, Wake County, NC's Transport costs are 22.03% higher ($12,987 vs. $10,126), driving a large part of the cost difference. Movers could potentially save $2,861 in annual expenses. Housing, Food, Healthcare, Other Costs and Taxes costs for District of Columbia, DC , however, rise slightly.

Since Transport is one of the biggest drivers of living costs, this gap alone can noticeably change how the move feels month to month. If you drive a lot or have multiple vehicles, this category can quickly add up in your day-to-day costs.

Below we break down the key differences driving this gap.

What changed the most?

following categories which are the highest average cost to your new location and the lowest average cost from your current location.

Biggest Cost Change

Highest new COST when moving to District of Columbia, DC

Average Cost:

$18,028 per year

HOUSING costs are highest in District of Columbia, DC.

Biggest Save Change

Highest money SAVE when moving to District of Columbia, DC

Average Cost:

$10,126 per year

TRANSPORT costs are lowest in District of Columbia, DC.

Breakdown of price percentages per category.

Numbers are average costs per section.

Category	Difference
Housing	12.34% higher
Wake County, NC District of Columbia, DC Average Cost $18028.00 $20252.00 INFO: Housing costs are based on the Department of Housing and Urban Development. The data represented shows the rental cost at the 40th percentile at a given area for privately owned, rental unit. Studio apartments were paired with 1 adult families, 1 Bedroom apartments with 2 Adult families, and 2 bedroom apartments for families with 1 or 2 children.
Food	14.50% higher
Wake County, NC District of Columbia, DC Average Cost $4670.00 $5347.00 INFO: Food cost are based on the U.S. Department of Agriculture's food plan. Numbers are normalized to each area using weights from Feeding America and the Meal Gap data. This number assumes most food is bought at a local grocery store and then prepared at home.
Transport	-22.03% lower
Wake County, NC District of Columbia, DC Average Cost $12987.00 $10126.00 INFO: Transportation costs are a combination of auto ownership, auto use, and public transit. Data is collected from the Center for Neighborhood Technology (CNT).
Healthcare	25.17% higher
Wake County, NC District of Columbia, DC Average Cost $5197.00 $6505.00 INFO: Health care expenses come from an average of insurance premiums and out-of-pocket costs. The data assumes families purchase the lowest cost available insurance plan under the Affordable Care Act. Data comes from Kaiser Family foundation and U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).
Other Costs	12.78% higher
Wake County, NC District of Columbia, DC Average Cost $7637.00 $8613.00 INFO: This cost is calculated through the average spending of categories deemed necessary by the Bureau of Labor Statistics Consumer Expenditure Survey. These include apparel, personal care, household supplies, reading materials, and school supplies.
Taxes	8.60% higher
Wake County, NC District of Columbia, DC Average Cost $10671.00 $11589.00 INFO: Taxes are calculated from the National Bureau of Economic Research. The number weighs in personal income tax, state income tax, federal Social Security, and Medicare taxes.

In your new location your total average costs would be $62433.00 compared to your previous average costs of $59190.00.

The higher price could be attributed to different factors. For example, larger differences, the delta could be attributed to the fact that a city is a metropolitan location.

In this case District of Columbia, DC and Wake County, NC are both metropolitan locations.

Breakdown your annual expenses to see how far your current budget when moving to a several locations. Use our map to visually

Use the Cost of Living Map