Massachusetts vs Virginia
Twenty measures that tend to decide a move, side by side. Every figure is the same one the map shows, from the same source.
Massachusetts comes out ahead on 2 of them and Virginia on 13, but that tally is not a recommendation: it weighs a difference in class size the same as a difference in house price. Read the rows that matter to you.
MeasureMassachusettsVirginia
Home price$672,867$419,920
Rent paid$1,788$1,599
Cost of living141.2100.8
Income$104,828$92,090
Property tax1.00%0.78%
Income tax9.00%5.75%
Sales tax6.25%5.77%
Electric bill$183$173
Temperature50.1°F57.6°F
Snowfall29.5 in11.3 in
Precipitation42.1 in40.8 in
Sunshine3.82 kWh/m²4.24 kWh/m²
Students per teacher12.014.0
Bachelor's or higher48.3%43.3%
Crime rate315218
Commute30.6 min28.3 min
Unemployment4.4%3.7%
Population change+1.7%+2.9%
Wildfire risk51.033.1
Flood risk94.767.2
Bold marks the better figure where a measure has a better direction. Weather, snowfall and rainfall are shown plain, because warmer is not better — it is a preference.