Charleston
- Population
- 47,000
- Coordinates
- 38.35° N, 81.63° W
- Time zone
- America/New York
- Prices for
- Sep 2026
One person needs about $1,921 a month in Charleston, rent included: 68% less than in New York. The average net salary is $3,584 a month.
Livability
Seven domain scores, weighted. 6 of them have data for Charleston; a missing one is left out of the average, not counted as zero.
- Purchasing power25%83
- Safetycountry20%50
- Health carecountry15%59
- Climate10%No data
- Air qualitycountry10%57
- Connectivitycountry10%66
- Cost10%37
How each domain is scored
- Purchasing power, 25%
- What a local net salary buys against local prices, as a percentile.
- Safety, 20%
- Numbeo safety index for the city, or for its country when the city has no survey.
- Health care, 15%
- Numbeo health care index, city first, then country.
- Climate, 10%
- Numbeo climate index where surveyed, otherwise a comfort score from NASA climate normals.
- Air quality, 10%
- 30-day mean US AQI on a 0-100 scale: 100 at AQI 25 or cleaner, 0 at 150 or worse.
- Connectivity, 10%
- Percentile of median fixed broadband download speed, city first, then country.
- Cost, 10%
- Cheaper places score higher: the percentile of the cost-of-living plus rent index, inverted.
- Livability rank in United States
- #266
- Cheapest-city rank, worldwide
- #2,160
What it costs
US dollars a month. Indices compare with New York, which is 100; changes are against the same month a year earlier.
Prices
55 everyday prices in US dollars, the median of this month's contributions, each against a base you choose.
Differences are against New York; teal marks a price that is lower (or a salary that is higher).
| Item | Charleston | New York | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Restaurants | |||
| Meal, inexpensive restaurant | $14.50 | $25.00 | −42% |
| Meal for 2, mid-range restaurant (3 courses) | $50.00 | $140 | −64% |
| McMeal at McDonald's (or equivalent combo meal) | $10.00 | $14.00 | −29% |
| Domestic beer (0.5 l, draught) | $3.00 | $8.00 | −63% |
| Imported beer (0.33 l bottle, restaurant) | $6.50 | $10.00 | −35% |
| Cappuccino (regular) | $3.00 | $6.38 | −53% |
| Coke/Pepsi (0.33 l bottle) | $2.33 | $3.80 | −39% |
| Water (0.33 l bottle) | $1.88 | $2.90 | −35% |
| Markets | |||
| Milk (1 l) | $0.77 | $1.36 | −43% |
| Loaf of fresh white bread (500g) | $2.20 | $4.69 | −53% |
| Rice, white (1 kg) | $1.65 | $6.97 | −76% |
| Eggs (12) | $3.29 | $5.73 | −43% |
| Local cheese (1 kg) | $11.02 | $17.38 | −37% |
| Chicken fillets (1 kg) | $12.13 | $15.11 | −20% |
| Beef round (1 kg, or equivalent red meat) | $16.19 | $17.77 | −9% |
| Apples (1 kg) | $4.39 | $6.11 | −28% |
| Bananas (1 kg) | $1.04 | $2.20 | −53% |
| Oranges (1 kg) | $2.20 | $5.77 | −62% |
| Tomato (1 kg) | $5.05 | $6.25 | −19% |
| Potato (1 kg) | $1.96 | $3.47 | −44% |
| Onion (1 kg) | $2.84 | $4.17 | −32% |
| Lettuce (1 head) | $2.00 | $2.72 | −26% |
| Water (1.5 l bottle) | $1.00 | $2.50 | −60% |
| Bottle of wine, mid-range | $10.00 | $20.00 | −50% |
| Domestic beer (0.5 l bottle) | $1.73 | $3.21 | −46% |
| Imported beer (0.33 l bottle) | $6.00 | $3.96 | +52% |
| Cigarettes (20 pack, Marlboro) | $6.00 | $19.00 | −68% |
| Transport | |||
| One-way ticket, local transport | — | $3.00 | — |
| Monthly pass, regular price | — | $140 | — |
| Taxi start, normal tariff | — | $3.00 | — |
| Taxi, 1 km, normal tariff | — | $2.18 | — |
| Taxi, 1 hour waiting, normal tariff | — | $42.00 | — |
| Gasoline (1 l) | $0.89 | $1.10 | −19% |
| Volkswagen Golf 1.4 90 KW Trendline (or equivalent new car) | $36,168 | $35,458 | +2% |
| Toyota Corolla Sedan 1.6l 97kW (or equivalent new car) | $25,638 | $25,309 | +1% |
| Utilities, per month | |||
| Basic utilities, 85m² apartment (electricity, heating, cooling, water, garbage) | $200 | $232 | −14% |
| Mobile plan (calls + 10GB data) | $45.33 | $73.50 | −38% |
| Internet (60 Mbps+, unlimited, cable/ADSL) | $55.00 | $71.93 | −24% |
| Sports and leisure | |||
| Fitness club, monthly fee (1 adult) | $31.00 | $126 | −75% |
| Tennis court rent (1 hour, weekend) | $17.00 | $62.38 | −73% |
| Cinema, 1 seat, international release | $12.00 | $23.00 | −48% |
| Childcare | |||
| Preschool, full day, private (monthly, 1 child) | $533 | $3,366 | −84% |
| International primary school (yearly, 1 child) | $6,500 | $60,589 | −89% |
| Clothing and shoes | |||
| 1 pair of jeans (Levi's 501 or similar) | $39.75 | $72.80 | −45% |
| 1 summer dress, chain store (Zara, H&M) | $47.75 | $53.22 | −10% |
| 1 pair of Nike running shoes, mid-range | $70.00 | $118 | −40% |
| 1 pair of men's leather business shoes | $121 | $125 | −3% |
| Rent, per month | |||
| Apartment (1 bedroom) in city centre | $1,033 | $4,438 | −77% |
| Apartment (1 bedroom) outside centre | $783 | $3,033 | −74% |
| Apartment (3 bedrooms) in city centre | $1,742 | $9,242 | −81% |
| Apartment (3 bedrooms) outside centre | $1,346 | $5,461 | −75% |
| Buying an apartment | |||
| Price per square meter, apartment in city centre | $1,116 | $18,759 | −94% |
| Price per square meter, apartment outside centre | $1,116 | $6,523 | −83% |
| Salary and financing | |||
| Average monthly net salary, after tax | $3,584 | $5,163 | −31% |
| Mortgage interest rate, 20-year fixed rate (%) | 6.15% | 6.49% | −0.3 pts |
Three years of prices
Each line starts at 100 in its first month, so a rise in rent can be read against a rise in salary on the same scale. The core basket is twelve everyday prices. Hover for the actual values.
Show the monthly values
| Month | Core basket index | Rent, 1 bedroom | Net salary |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 2026 | — | $1,033 | $3,584 |
| Jul 2026 | — | — | — |
| Jun 2026 | — | — | — |
| May 2026 | 68.5 | $1,033 | $3,584 |
| Feb 2026 | 68.4 | $933 | $3,584 |
| Dec 2025 | 68.4 | $933 | $3,451 |
| Nov 2025 | 68.6 | $933 | $3,418 |
| Sep 2025 | 68.6 | $933 | $3,122 |
| May 2025 | 55.0 | $933 | $3,122 |
| Apr 2025 | 56.4 | $933 | $3,122 |
| Mar 2025 | 56.4 | $933 | $3,122 |
| Feb 2025 | 55.6 | $933 | $3,122 |
| Jan 2025 | 55.6 | $933 | $3,122 |
| Dec 2024 | 55.9 | $933 | $3,044 |
| Nov 2024 | 57.2 | $992 | $2,967 |
| Oct 2024 | 56.7 | $975 | $2,713 |
| Sep 2024 | 56.8 | $900 | $2,458 |
| Aug 2024 | 56.0 | $900 | $2,458 |
| Jul 2024 | 55.3 | $900 | $2,458 |
| Jun 2024 | 55.8 | $900 | $2,458 |
| May 2024 | 54.8 | $900 | $2,458 |
| Apr 2024 | 53.0 | $900 | $2,458 |
| Mar 2024 | 52.7 | $900 | $2,458 |
| Feb 2024 | 62.0 | — | $2,458 |
| Jan 2024 | — | — | $2,458 |
| Dec 2023 | — | — | $3,079 |
| Nov 2023 | — | — | $3,079 |
| Oct 2023 | — | — | $3,079 |
Safety
Numbeo crime survey. Both indices run 0 to 100; they are two sides of the same answers.
Country-level: the livability score uses United States's safety figure
No crime survey has been published for Charleston yet.
Quality of life
Numbeo's published indices for Charleston. Listed as Numbeo computes them, next to this index's own figures above.
Numbeo has not ranked Charleston on quality of life.
Climate
Monthly means from NASA POWER climate normals. Temperature bands use the same scale on every city page.
No monthly climate normals for Charleston yet.
- Annual mean
- —
- Warmest month
- —
- Coldest month
- —
- Rain a year
- —
- HumidityRelative, annual mean
- —
- SunshineSolar energy per day
- —
- Clear-sky daysA year
- —
- Comfort score0-100, 100 at 14-22 °C
- —
Air, internet and housing
The last 30 days of air, the latest month of broadband tests, and the property survey.
Air
Country-level estimateNo air-quality readings for Charleston.
Internet
United States median; city not listed- Upload
- 64Mbps, fixed
- Latency
- 12ms, fixed
- Mobile download
- 187Mbps
- Mobile latency
- 27ms
Speedtest Global Index, Aug 2026.
Housing
- Price to income
- 1.6Years of income, 90 m² flat
- Price to rent
- 5.1Years of rent, centre
- Rental yield
- 19.6%Gross, centre
- Mortgage rate
- 6.45%20-year fixed
- 80 m² in the centre
- 2.1Years of net salary
Numbeo property survey, 20 Sept 2026.
People & society
Who lives in Charleston, and how United States lives together. Each figure says whether it describes the city or the whole country, and where it comes from.
- PopulationCity, Wikidata
- 48,864
- DensityCity, Wikidata
- 578 per km²
- ElevationCity, Wikidata
- 597 m
- Median ageCity, US Census Bureau, American Community Survey, 2023
- 42.6 years
- Aged 65 and overNational, CIA World Factbook
- 19%
- Born abroadCity, US Census Bureau, American Community Survey, 2023
- 3.8%
- Speak only English at homeCity, US Census Bureau, American Community Survey, 2023
- 96%
- Speak Spanish at homeCity, US Census Bureau, American Community Survey, 2023
- 1.0%
Religion
National- Christian77%
- No religion16%
- Jewish1.8%
- Buddhist1.2%
- Muslim0.9%
- Hindu0.6%
- Other religions0.6%
- Folk religions0.2%
Diversity index 0.37, where 0 means everyone shares one faith.
Source: Wikipedia, Religions by country, 2020
Languages
National- EnglishOfficial78%
- Spanish13%
- Chinese1.1%
English is an official language.
Source: CIA World Factbook, 2017
How society works
NationalSix dimensions of national culture on one 0–100 scale.
- You or your group91People look after their groupPeople look after themselves
- Equality60Hierarchy is acceptedPower is shared
- Rules and certainty46Relaxed about rules and surprisesClear rules, little left to chance
- Success or care62Caring and quality of life come firstAchievement and success come first
- Looking ahead26Tradition and quick resultsSaving and planning for the long run
- Enjoying life68Restraint and dutyFun and leisure matter
Source: Hofstede's cultural dimensions, 2015
Freedoms
NationalFreedom HouseFree
- Freedom in the World Freedom House81
- Democracy Index EIU, out of 107.9
- Press freedom RSF65
- LGBTQ+ equality Equaldex65
- Women in parliament share of seats29%
Source: Freedom House, EIU and RSF via Wikipedia, Equaldex, World Bank, 2026
Happiness
NationalSource: World Happiness Report via Wikipedia, 2026
Cities like Charleston
In other countries, with the closest livability score and cost of living index.
About these numbers
What the figures on this page rest on.
- Confidence
- Medium confidence
- Contributors
- 13Numbeo price survey
- Latest prices
- Sep 20262 readings that month
- Months with prices
- 6 of 12Last 12 months
- Items priced
- 91%2 basket items from the country median
- Location
- Matched to the extended GeoNames list
- Index rebuilt
- 26 Sept 2026