Compare / Allentown to Charleston
Allentown, PA vs Charleston, SC
Simple answer
You'd likely save $45 a month in Allentown.
This is the HUD 2-bedroom fair-market rent for October 2026 through September 2027. It is not your lease.
The largest cost gap in this pair is Census rent. Census median gross rent differs by $256, with Charleston higher.
Pennsylvania taxes wages at a flat 3.07%. South Carolina taxes wages at rates up to 6.00%. Combined sales tax differs by 1.1 percentage points, higher in South Carolina. The effective property tax gap is 0.71 percentage points, higher in Pennsylvania.
After a move from Pennsylvania to South Carolina, these benefit results change for a family of four at $40,000 and a single adult at $18,000: Marketplace premium tax credits, Medicaid and CHIP.
A $75,000 salary in Allentown lines up with about $75,746 in Charleston on the 2024 all-items price parity. Census median gross rent and the commute figures are 2024. Fair Market Rents are fiscal year 2027.
Allentown
Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton, PA-NJ
- 2-bedroom Fair Market Rent
- $1,839
- HUD area
- Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton, PA HUD Metro FMR Area
- Census median gross rent
- $1,458
- All-items price parity
- 100.0
- Goods price parity
- 100.6
- Utilities price parity
- 107.6
- Mean commute
- 28.2 min
- Median household income
- $83,974
Charleston
Charleston-North Charleston, SC
- 2-bedroom Fair Market Rent
- $1,884
- HUD area
- Charleston-North Charleston, SC MSA
- Census median gross rent
- $1,714
- All-items price parity
- 101.0
- Goods price parity
- 96.3
- Utilities price parity
- 88.2
- Mean commute
- 29.4 min
- Median household income
- $90,307
Equivalent salary
The first number keeps the same place in the national price level. The second also runs 2026 federal income tax, employee Social Security and Medicare, and a simplified state income tax. Groceries use the BEA goods price parity, not a grocery receipt.
$75,746
Salary in Charleston that matches the 2024 all-items regional price parity.
$76,368
Gross salary in Charleston whose after-tax pay buys the same basket, using price parities.
$76,835
Scales the salary by the ratio of HUD 2-bedroom Fair Market Rents. Rent is not the whole budget.
Taxes on the two sides of the move
| Tax | Pennsylvania | South Carolina |
|---|---|---|
| State income tax on wages | 3.07% flat | up to 6.00% |
| Combined sales tax, Jan 1, 2026 | 6.3% | 7.5% |
| Effective property tax, ACS 2024 median / median | 1.16% | 0.45% |
On a $400,000 home, the state median effective rate implies about $4,631 a year in Pennsylvania and $1,786 in South Carolina. That illustration is not a local bill. Childcare prices are not in the verified dataset for these metros.
Benefits if you land in South Carolina
Same household, $40,000 a year, scored once in Pennsylvania and once in South Carolina. This is an illustration, not your application.
Food stamps (SNAP)
AllentownLikely eligible
CharlestonLikely eligible
Medicaid and CHIP
AllentownLikely eligible
CharlestonLikely eligible
WIC
AllentownLikely eligible
CharlestonLikely eligible
School meals
AllentownLikely eligible
CharlestonLikely eligible
LIHEAP
AllentownMaybe
CharlestonMaybe
Earned Income Tax Credit
AllentownLikely eligible
CharlestonLikely eligible
Child Tax Credit
AllentownLikely eligible
CharlestonLikely eligible
Marketplace premium tax credits
AllentownUnlikely
CharlestonLikely eligible
Lifeline phone and internet
AllentownLikely eligible
CharlestonLikely eligible
SSI
AllentownUnlikely
CharlestonUnlikely
| Program | Allentown | Charleston |
|---|---|---|
| Food stamps (SNAP) | Likely eligible | Likely eligible |
| Medicaid and CHIP | Likely eligible | Likely eligible |
| WIC | Likely eligible | Likely eligible |
| School meals | Likely eligible | Likely eligible |
| LIHEAP | Maybe | Maybe |
| Earned Income Tax Credit | Likely eligible | Likely eligible |
| Child Tax Credit | Likely eligible | Likely eligible |
| Marketplace premium tax credits | Unlikely | Likely eligible |
| Lifeline phone and internet | Likely eligible | Likely eligible |
| SSI | Unlikely | Unlikely |
Marketplace premium tax credits changes. In Allentown the result is “Unlikely — Medicaid is the closer program.” In Charleston it is “Likely inside the 2026 subsidy range.” Pennsylvania expanded Medicaid, and this income is in the Medicaid range. Marketplace subsidies are usually not the program in that case.
Related comparisons
From Allentown
The eight largest 2-bedroom Fair Market Rent gaps from Allentown.
- Allentown and San Francisco · rent gap $1,858
- Allentown and San Jose · rent gap $1,433
- Allentown and Boston · rent gap $1,169
- Allentown and New York · rent gap $1,132
- Allentown and Los Angeles · rent gap $1,125
- Allentown and San Diego · rent gap $984
- Allentown and McAllen · rent gap $822
- Allentown and Wichita · rent gap $796
Nearby metros
How the salary and tax math works · The reverse city order redirects to this address.