Compare / Charlotte to Chicago
Charlotte, NC vs Chicago, IL
Simple answer
You'd likely save $226 a month in Charlotte.
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 housing prices. The BEA housing price parity differs by 14.4 points (Charlotte 97.6, Chicago 112.0).
North Carolina taxes wages at a flat 3.99%. Illinois taxes wages at a flat 4.95%. Combined sales tax differs by 2.0 percentage points, higher in Illinois. The effective property tax gap is 1.31 percentage points, higher in Illinois.
After a move from North Carolina to Illinois, those two example households keep the same benefit status labels. A different income can still split Medicaid and marketplace credits.
A $75,000 salary in Charlotte lines up with about $79,813 in Chicago on the 2024 all-items price parity. Census median gross rent and the commute figures are 2024. Fair Market Rents are fiscal year 2027.
Charlotte
Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC
- 2-bedroom Fair Market Rent
- $1,785
- HUD area
- Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC HUD Metro FMR Area
- Census median gross rent
- $1,594
- All-items price parity
- 97.3
- Goods price parity
- 96.6
- Utilities price parity
- 89.2
- Mean commute
- 27.5 min
- Median household income
- $85,938
Chicago
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN
- 2-bedroom Fair Market Rent
- $2,011
- HUD area
- Chicago-Joliet-Naperville, IL HUD Metro FMR Area
- Census median gross rent
- $1,469
- All-items price parity
- 103.6
- Goods price parity
- 107.3
- Utilities price parity
- 83.6
- Mean commute
- 30.9 min
- Median household income
- $90,770
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.
$79,813
Salary in Chicago that matches the 2024 all-items regional price parity.
$82,457
Gross salary in Chicago whose after-tax pay buys the same basket, using price parities.
$84,496
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 | North Carolina | Illinois |
|---|---|---|
| State income tax on wages | 3.99% flat | 4.95% flat |
| Combined sales tax, Jan 1, 2026 | 7.0% | 9.0% |
| Effective property tax, ACS 2024 median / median | 0.61% | 1.92% |
On a $400,000 home, the state median effective rate implies about $2,455 a year in North Carolina and $7,694 in Illinois. That illustration is not a local bill. Childcare prices are not in the verified dataset for these metros.
Benefits if you land in Illinois
Same household, $40,000 a year, scored once in North Carolina and once in Illinois. This is an illustration, not your application.
Food stamps (SNAP)
CharlotteLikely eligible
ChicagoLikely eligible
Medicaid and CHIP
CharlotteLikely eligible
ChicagoLikely eligible
WIC
CharlotteLikely eligible
ChicagoLikely eligible
School meals
CharlotteLikely eligible
ChicagoLikely eligible
LIHEAP
CharlotteMaybe
ChicagoMaybe
Earned Income Tax Credit
CharlotteLikely eligible
ChicagoLikely eligible
Child Tax Credit
CharlotteLikely eligible
ChicagoLikely eligible
Marketplace premium tax credits
CharlotteUnlikely
ChicagoUnlikely
Lifeline phone and internet
CharlotteLikely eligible
ChicagoLikely eligible
SSI
CharlotteUnlikely
ChicagoUnlikely
| Program | Charlotte | Chicago |
|---|---|---|
| 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 | Unlikely |
| Lifeline phone and internet | Likely eligible | Likely eligible |
| SSI | Unlikely | Unlikely |
At $40,000 the status labels match. A single adult around $18,000 is where Medicaid expansion and the marketplace coverage gap usually split.
Related comparisons
From Charlotte
The eight largest 2-bedroom Fair Market Rent gaps from Charlotte.
- Charlotte and San Francisco · rent gap $1,912
- Charlotte and San Jose · rent gap $1,487
- Charlotte and Boston · rent gap $1,223
- Charlotte and New York · rent gap $1,186
- Charlotte and Los Angeles · rent gap $1,179
- Charlotte and San Diego · rent gap $1,038
- Charlotte and Miami · rent gap $779
- Charlotte and McAllen · rent gap $768
Nearby metros
How the salary and tax math works · The reverse city order redirects to this address.