Blacksburg-Christiansburg-Radford → Colorado Springs
Relocation analysis based on 7 federal data sources
Should you move?
Moving from Blacksburg-Christiansburg-Radford to Colorado Springs is unfavorable: BEA regional price parity goes from 92.7 to 100.7 (US = 100), and HUD 2-bedroom rent rises by $641/mo.
- +$10,406
- BLS median salary higher in Colorado Springs
- 223 to 481
- violent crimes per 100K (FBI UCR, state-level)
- 13.9:1 to 16.6:1
- NCES student-teacher ratio
- $2,414
- DOL infant care higher / yr in Colorado Springs
BEA Regional Price Parity, HUD Fair Market Rent, BLS OEWS, FBI UCR, NCES, and DOL. The table below lets you override the composite with your own priorities.
Pros of Moving
- + $10K higher median salary
Cons of Moving
- - 8% higher cost of living
- - $641/mo more expensive rent (2BR)
- - Higher violent crime rate
- - Higher student-teacher ratios
- - More expensive childcare
- - More environmental violations
Purchasing power tightens: BEA RPP rises from 92.7 to 100.7, so the same paycheck buys less in Colorado Springs (ratio 1.09). HUD 2BR Fair Market Rent rises $641/mo ($7,692/yr) from $1,094 in Blacksburg-Christiansburg-Radford to $1,735 in Colorado Springs.
Blacksburg-Christiansburg-Radford still leads on 6 of 7 federal dimensions, the origin keeps the edge. Colorado Springs sits #364 of 387 metros on PlainRelocate livability (bottom third of the corpus). Blacksburg-Christiansburg-Radford is #18/387 on the same ranking. Composite verdict: Unfavorable. Override it with the dimension table below.
BLS OEWS median salary moves $10,406 higher ($62,501 → $72,907). Labor-market size: 59,150 tracked jobs at origin vs 304,920 at destination.
State retirement friendliness favors staying put: Virginia scores 64 (C, #20/51) vs Colorado at 46 (F, #44/51). Full state tax and healthcare sub-scores sit in the retirement desk below.
State retirement friendliness
Primary-state scores from PlainRelocate's retirement registry (tax + healthcare + climate composite). Metro pairs use each metro's primary state abbreviation.
- Income tax
- 78
- Property tax
- 71
- Estate tax
- 100
- Healthcare
- 62
- Income tax
- 80
- Property tax
- 90
- Estate tax
- 100
- Healthcare
- 26
Full retirement ranking · Source composite documented on methodology (Tax Foundation + AARP tax guides + federal healthcare/climate inputs).
Salary Adjustment Calculator
Enter your current salary in Blacksburg-Christiansburg-Radford to see what you'd need to earn in Colorado Springs to maintain the same purchasing power.
Colorado Springs metro profile · Livability rankings · Methodology
Source: BEA Regional Price Parities, HUD Fair Market Rents, BLS OES, FBI UCR, NCES, DOL, EPA; retirement desk: Tax Foundation + AARP tax guides June 2026