Charleston-North Charleston cost of living
Prices in the Charleston-North Charleston, SC metro area run at 101.0 against a national average of 100, ranking it #67 of 387 metros. Rents there sit at 119.8.
What drives the number
Charleston-North Charleston sits at 101.0, which is as close to the national average as this series gets. It ranks #67 of 387 metro areas, in the middle by construction rather than by coincidence. Against South Carolina as a whole it is 7.3 points more expensive, which is the usual direction: cities cost more than the states around them.
Housing is doing nearly all of the work. Rents sit at 119.8 while goods sit at 96.3, a gap of 18.8 points between what it costs to live somewhere and what it costs to buy things. That pattern is the single most useful thing the parity series shows: the cost of a place is the cost of its housing.
The practical use of this number is converting pay between places. Take any salary quoted here, divide by 101.0, multiply by 100, and you have what it would need to be nationally to leave you equally well off.
The vertical line is the national average of 100. Source: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, SARPP, 2024.
What the biggest local jobs are really worth
The same pay buys different amounts in different places, so a salary quoted in Charleston-North Charleston is not comparable to one quoted elsewhere until it is divided by the local parity. These are the occupations that employ the most people here, with the quoted median alongside what that median is worth at national prices.
| Occupation | Employed | Median pay | Worth nationally | U.S. median |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Retail Salespersons | 12,630 | $30,610 | $30,307 | $34,580 |
| Fast Food and Counter Workers | 9,760 | $28,450 | $28,168 | $30,480 |
| Registered Nurses | 9,560 | $80,620 | $79,822 | $93,600 |
| Waiters and Waitresses | 9,100 | $18,890 | $18,703 | $33,760 |
| Cashiers | 8,530 | $28,630 | $28,347 | $31,190 |
| Customer Service Representatives | 8,440 | $40,690 | $40,287 | $42,830 |
| Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand | 7,680 | $37,200 | $36,832 | $38,940 |
| Office Clerks, General | 7,320 | $39,900 | $39,505 | $43,630 |
Pay from the BLS metro survey, adjusted by dividing by the metro parity of 101.0.
Nearby metro areas
| Metro area | All items | Rents | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Port Royal | 98.0 | 101.2 | #114 |
| Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia | 97.3 | 97.6 | #122 |
| Columbia | 93.7 | 79.5 | #189 |
| Myrtle Beach-Conway-North Myrtle Beach | 93.6 | 83.1 | #191 |
| Greenville-Anderson-Greer | 93.3 | 76.8 | #202 |
| Augusta-Richmond County | 91.9 | 70.6 | #244 |
Charleston-North Charleston: common questions
Is Charleston-North Charleston expensive?
Prices are 1% above the national average, a parity of 101.0 where the country is 100. It ranks #67 of the 387 metro areas BEA measures. Against South Carolina as a whole it is 7.3 points more expensive.
What salary do you need in Charleston-North Charleston?
The median worker there earns $47,620, which buys what $47,149 buys nationally once local prices are taken into account. Comparing a salary offer between cities without this adjustment is comparing nothing useful.
Is housing the reason?
Usually. Rents here are at 119.8 against goods at 96.3. Goods barely vary between American cities because most are shipped and priced nationally; housing varies enormously, and it dominates any cost of living comparison.