Parkersburg-Vienna → Dover
Relocation analysis based on 7 federal data sources
Pros of Moving
- + $8K higher median salary
- + Fewer environmental violations
Cons of Moving
- - 10% higher cost of living
- - $542/mo more expensive rent (2BR)
- - Higher violent crime rate
- - More expensive childcare
Moving from Parkersburg-Vienna to Dover shifts your BEA Regional Price Parity from 87.1 to 97.5 (100 = US average), so a Parkersburg-Vienna salary needs to be multiplied by 1.12 to hold the same purchasing power in Dover. On rent, HUD Fair Market Rent for a 2-bedroom goes from $928/month in Parkersburg-Vienna to $1,470/month in Dover - a higher monthly bill of $542, or $6,504/year. That rent delta alone is often the single biggest line item when relocating.
Wages tell the other half. BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics report a median salary of $56,041 in Parkersburg-Vienna versus $64,394 in Dover - a raw gap of $8,353 higher. The Dover labor market has 59,250 tracked jobs against 30,150 in Parkersburg-Vienna, shaping how easy it is to find a comparable role. Combine that with the cost-of-living shift above and you get the real purchasing-power delta, sometimes a "higher salary" is actually a pay cut once rent and RPP are applied.
Safety, schools, and childcare round out the move. FBI UCR violent crime rates near Parkersburg-Vienna and Dover are 242 and 368 per 100,000 (state-level). NCES student-teacher ratios run 13.1:1 at origin versus 13.9:1 at destination. DOL center-based infant care costs $8,974/year in Parkersburg-Vienna versus $11,172/year in Dover. Our composite verdict - Less Favorable - weighs all seven federal sources; the dimension table below lets you override that with your personal priorities.
Salary Adjustment Calculator
Enter your current salary in Parkersburg-Vienna to see what you'd need to earn in Dover to maintain the same purchasing power.
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Frequently Asked Questions
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Source: BEA Regional Price Parities, HUD Fair Market Rents, BLS OES, FBI UCR, NCES, DOL, EPA June 2026
Data Sources
- Cost of Living: Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) Regional Price Parities
- Rent: HUD Fair Market Rents (FMR)
- Wages: Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OES)
- Crime: FBI Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) - state level
- Schools: National Center for Education Statistics (NCES)
- Childcare: Department of Labor (DOL) - state level
- Environment: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.