Roanoke vs Richmond leftover
Moving to Richmond costs you $22 a month
$2,348/mo leftover in Richmond vs $2,370 in Roanoke after tax and rent ($22 less). −$264 a year for the same registered nurse, the same household size, and the same number of bedrooms. Not a cost-of-living index.
Roanoke leftover
$2,370
a month after tax and rent
Richmond leftover
$2,348
−$22 vs Roanoke
Compare Roanoke to another metro
Same paycheck. Try a different city next to Roanoke.
Monthly gap
Roanoke → Richmond
$22
less / month in Roanoke
$2,348 in Richmond · $2,370 in Roanoke · 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, 145 households moved Roanoke → Richmond (avg AGI $61,352). 25 went the other way. The whole move →
−$22 / mo
| Per month | Roanoke | Richmond | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gross pay | $7,208 | $7,575 | +$367 |
| Income and payroll tax | $1,791 | $1,921 | +$130 |
| Take-home pay | $5,418 | $5,655 | +$237 |
| Rent | $1,090 | $1,362 | +$272 |
| Getting around | $553 | $553 | $0 |
| Groceries | $388 | $384 | −$4 |
| Healthcare | $436 | $432 | −$4 |
| Utilities | $242 | $240 | −$2 |
| Everything else | $339 | $336 | −$3 |
| Left over | $2,370 | $2,348 | −$22 |
To break even in Richmond, you'd need to earn
$91,500
Household gross, versus $86,500 today. That's the salary that leaves you exactly as much at the end of the month as Roanoke does now.
The tax difference alone
−$253
A year, in state and local income tax. Effective rates: 24.8% in Roanoke, 25.4% in Richmond.
More about Richmond
Roanoke, VA in full
State income tax topping out at 5.75%, a median 2-bedroom asking rent of $1,298 and 208 sunny days; commutes average 23 minutes.
Richmond, VA in full
DC's cheaper cousin, two hours from both mountains and ocean.
The reverse move
Same two cities, but starting from Richmond on Richmond wages.
Richmond → Roanoke →Questions
Is the cost of living lower in Richmond than Roanoke?
A one-bedroom is about $1,090 in Roanoke versus $1,362 in Richmond. On a one-adult, one-bedroom household, leftover is about $22 a month lower in Richmond. Change the job or household on the comparison to see your number.
Does Richmond have state income tax?
Richmond is in Virginia, which taxes wage income.
What changes if you move from Roanoke to Richmond?
Take-home pay is recalculated under Virginia 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 Roanoke and Richmond 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.