Route comparison
Washington, DC vs Philadelphia, PA: Cost of Living
Compare Washington, DC and Philadelphia, PA using historical BEA 2024 price indexes and HUD FY2027 2-bedroom FMR benchmarks. Add your own salary, lease and moving quote to a budget summary.
Washington, DC
DC
- 2024 overall RPP (US=100)
- 108.884
- 2024 housing-rent RPP
- 151.134
- 2024 goods RPP
- 104.847
- HUD FY2027 2-BR FMR
- $2,438/mo
City name is shorthand for an area benchmark. This September 2026 review did not recheck this area's full BEA/HUD geographic mapping.
Income tax and payroll deductions are not calculated. Confirm take-home pay for your work and home addresses separately.
Philadelphia, PA
PA
- 2024 overall RPP (US=100)
- 102.554
- 2024 housing-rent RPP
- 113.141
- 2024 goods RPP
- 96.833
- HUD FY2027 2-BR FMR
- $1,860/mo
City name is shorthand for an area benchmark. This September 2026 review did not recheck this area's full BEA/HUD geographic mapping.
Income tax and payroll deductions are not calculated. Confirm take-home pay for your work and home addresses separately.
Historical RPP salary illustration
In the BEA 2024 benchmark, Philadelphia, PA has a lower overall price level than Washington, DC by about 5.8% (RPP 108.884 to 102.554).
$60,000 in Washington, DC
-> $56,512
in Philadelphia, PA
$100,000 in Washington, DC
-> $94,186
in Philadelphia, PA
$150,000 in Washington, DC
-> $141,280
in Philadelphia, PA
Salary illustrations use BEA 2024 overall Regional Price Parities (RPP) only, before tax and household-specific adjustments. Overall RPP already includes housing. HUD FY2027 2-bedroom Fair Market Rent is a separate historical gross-rent benchmark, not a current lease or median rent. Do not add rent to the RPP salary figure. Your lease and moving quote belong in a separate budget. Not financial advice.
Step 2: what will the move itself cost?
Put your actual lease, deposit, overlap rent and mover quote beside the historical salary illustration. Leave amounts you do not yet know blank.
Migration signal: Washington, DC vs Philadelphia, PA
IRS tax-return migration · 2022-2023Washington, DC
- Net people
- −23,075
- Net rank
- #60 of 65
- Top origin share
- 5%
- Top destination share
- 6%
Largest source: Anne Arundel County, MD. Largest destination: Anne Arundel County, MD.
Philadelphia, PA
- Net people
- −6,400
- Net rank
- #52 of 65
- Top origin share
- 6%
- Top destination share
- 4%
Largest source: Mercer County, NJ. Largest destination: Berks County, PA.
Rent delta: Philadelphia, PA is $578/mo lower for HUD FY2027 2-BR FMR than Washington, DC. Housing RPP moves from 151.134 to 113.141.
Migration figures are derived from IRS SOI county-to-county migration data for 2022-2023, mapped to metros via Census CBSA delineation. Small county-to-county flows are IRS-suppressed, so per-metro totals are lower bounds. Source: IRS SOI migration data.
Frequently asked questions
- Is Philadelphia, PA cheaper or more expensive than Washington, DC?
- In the BEA 2024 benchmark, Philadelphia, PA (RPP 102.554) has an overall price level about 5.8% lower than Washington, DC (RPP 108.884). This does not measure your current household costs.
- What salary do I need in Philadelphia, PA if I earn $100,000 in Washington, DC?
- The historical RPP illustration is approximately $94,186 in Philadelphia, PA, using $100,000 x (102.554 / 108.884). It uses BEA 2024 overall price indexes before tax and household adjustments; HUD rent is not added to this figure.
- Which metro had stronger net migration, Washington, DC or Philadelphia, PA?
- For 2022-2023, Washington, DC had a net loss of 23,075 people, while Philadelphia, PA had a net loss of 6,400 people. IRS small-flow suppression means these are lower-bound research signals, not complete population-change totals.