Columbia → Kingston
Relocation analysis based on 7 federal data sources
Should you move?
Moving from Columbia to Kingston is less favorable: BEA regional price parity goes from 93.7 to 100.7 (US = 100), and HUD 2-bedroom rent rises by $542/mo.
- +$2,616
- BLS median salary higher in Kingston
- 439 to 380
- violent crimes per 100K (FBI UCR, state-level)
- 14.3:1 to 11.8:1
- NCES student-teacher ratio
- $6,137
- DOL infant care higher / yr in Kingston
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
- + $3K higher median salary
- + Better student-teacher ratios
Cons of Moving
- - 7% higher cost of living
- - $542/mo more expensive rent (2BR)
- - More expensive childcare
- - More environmental violations
Purchasing power tightens: BEA RPP rises from 93.7 to 100.7, so the same paycheck buys less in Kingston (ratio 1.08). HUD 2BR Fair Market Rent rises $542/mo ($6,504/yr) from $1,276 in Columbia to $1,818 in Kingston.
The seven-dimension ledger splits (3 destination wins · 4 origin wins); priorities decide this move. Kingston sits #330 of 387 metros on PlainRelocate livability (bottom third of the corpus). Columbia is #29/387 on the same ranking. Composite verdict: Less Favorable. Override it with the dimension table below.
BLS OEWS median salary moves $2,616 higher ($64,117 → $66,733). Labor-market size: 383,170 tracked jobs at origin vs 52,520 at destination.
State retirement friendliness favors staying put: South Carolina scores 80 (A, #3/51) vs New York at 46 (F, #46/51). 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
- 85
- Property tax
- 87
- Estate tax
- 100
- Healthcare
- 56
- Income tax
- 80
- Property tax
- 48
- Estate tax
- 50
- Healthcare
- 96
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 Columbia to see what you'd need to earn in Kingston to maintain the same purchasing power.
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