Athens vs Atlanta leftover
You'd keep $890 more a month in Atlanta
$2,492/mo leftover in Atlanta vs $1,602 in Athens after tax and rent ($890 more). +$10,680 a year for the same registered nurse, the same household size, and the same number of bedrooms. Not a cost-of-living index.
Athens leftover
$1,602
a month after tax and rent
Atlanta leftover
$2,492
+$890 vs Athens
Compare Athens to another metro
Same paycheck. Try a different city next to Athens.
Monthly gap
Athens → Atlanta
$890
more / month in Atlanta
$2,492 in Atlanta · $1,602 in Athens · One adult, renting a 1-bedroom
Home
Only when you tap. We match the nearest metro and don't keep the coordinates.
Destination
In 2022-2023, 1,879 households moved Athens → Atlanta (avg AGI $57,133). 1,756 went the other way. The whole move →
+$890 / mo
| Per month | Athens | Atlanta | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gross pay | $6,250 | $7,891 | +$1,641 |
| Income and payroll tax | $1,427 | $1,998 | +$572 |
| Take-home pay | $4,823 | $5,892 | +$1,069 |
| Rent | $1,297 | $1,399 | +$102 |
| Getting around | $527 | $580 | +$53 |
| Groceries | $386 | $392 | +$6 |
| Healthcare | $434 | $441 | +$7 |
| Utilities | $241 | $245 | +$4 |
| Everything else | $337 | $343 | +$6 |
| Left over | $1,602 | $2,492 | +$890 |
To break even in Atlanta, you'd need to earn
$78,500
Household gross, versus $75,000 today. That's the salary that leaves you exactly as much at the end of the month as Athens does now.
The tax difference alone
−$1,022
A year, in state and local income tax. Effective rates: 22.8% in Athens, 25.3% in Atlanta.
More about Atlanta
Athens, GA in full
A flat 5.19% state income tax, a median 2-bedroom asking rent of $1,544 and 210 sunny days; commutes average 24 minutes.
Atlanta, GA in full
Big-city pay at mid-market housing costs, with a 31-minute average commute.
The reverse move
Same two cities, but starting from Atlanta on Atlanta wages.
Atlanta → Athens →Questions
Is the cost of living lower in Atlanta than Athens?
A one-bedroom is about $1,297 in Athens versus $1,399 in Atlanta. On a one-adult, one-bedroom household, leftover is about $890 a month higher in Atlanta. Change the job or household on the comparison to see your number.
Does Atlanta have state income tax?
Atlanta is in Georgia, which taxes wage income.
What changes if you move from Athens to Atlanta?
Take-home pay is recalculated under Georgia tax, rent is priced at the same bedroom count, and leftover is the gap. The from-to page also lists IRS households that already made the move, when that data exists.
Leftover is take-home after federal, state and city wage tax, minus asking rent at the bedroom count you set, minus a modelled month of groceries, utilities, healthcare, transport and childcare. It is not a cost-of-living index and not a moving quote. The dollar gap between Athens and Atlanta moves when you change the job, remote versus local pay, or bedrooms. How the math works · Leftover vs a COL index · Why a cheaper COL% can still lose leftover.
Rent is Zillow's asking rent for each metro; taxes and living costs are modelled. An estimate, not a quote or tax advice. How this is calculated.