Moving from Alabama to South Carolina
Alabama to South Carolina is a move of about 436 miles. Median rent is $1,180 a month in South Carolina and $1,007 in Alabama, and the median home is $259,000 against $209,900. State income tax is up to 6.00% in South Carolina and up to 5.00% in Alabama. Property tax runs 0.48% of home value in South Carolina and 0.38% in Alabama.
Moving to South Carolina costs about
$200/mo
more than Alabama each month, renting on a $80,000 household income
Not your income? Run it on your own numbers
Worth knowing
Housing (median rent) is what separates these two states
Of everything that changes when you move from Alabama to South Carolina, housing (median rent) moves the most: about $173 a month more, which is most of the whole difference.
Alabama vs South Carolina at a glance
| Alabama | South Carolina | |
|---|---|---|
| Median home value | $209,900 | $259,000 |
| Median rent | $1,007/mo | $1,180/mo |
| State income tax | Up to 5.00% | Up to 6.00% |
| Property tax rate | 0.38% | 0.48% |
| Groceries, gas & goods | 96 | 96 |
| Utilities | 85 | 88 |
Price levels are indexes where 100 is the national average. They cover everyday spending only; housing is the two rows above.
Monthly cost of living: Alabama vs South Carolina
| Monthly | AL | SC | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | |||
| Housing (median rent)Biggest factor | $1,007 | $1,180 | +$173 |
| Taxes | |||
| State income tax | $311 | $304 | -$7 |
| Local income tax (state average) | $7 | None | -$7 |
| Sales tax (on everyday spending) | $58 | $88 | +$30 |
| Everyday costs | |||
| Groceries, gas & goods | $1,767 | $1,766 | -$1 |
| Utilities | $346 | $361 | +$15 |
| Total | +$203 | ||
Cost to move from Alabama to South Carolina
$1,600 to $3,800
From a container you load yourself up to full-service movers.
Shipping one car adds about $450 to $700, against roughly $50 in fuel and lodging to drive it the 1-day trip yourself.
These are statewide figures. Birmingham is not Alabama-average and Greenville is not South Carolina-average, so a specific city can look nothing like its state. Compare metro areas instead to narrow it to 387 real places, including which side of a state line you would live on.
Run this with your own numbers
What jobs pay in South Carolina, after the cost of living
Estimates only, not advice. Housing and income figures come from the U.S. Census Bureau's American Community Survey (2024); price levels from the Bureau of Economic Analysis (2024); tax rates are for the 2026 tax year, compiled from state revenue departments and the Tax Foundation. Moving costs are modelled from published ranges rather than quoted. Every figure is a statewide median or average and will not match any particular household.