($1,502) Movers From Charleston, SC to Riverside, CA

What to know before moving from Charleston to Riverside

Moving from Charleston to Riverside means adjusting to a different pace of life — and a different price tag. On average, it costs significantly more to live in Charleston than in Riverside, making the move an opportunity for many to enjoy a lower cost of living.

Check out how Charleston compares to Riverside so you know what to expect before you relocate:

• Rent prices in Riverside are 8% lower than in Charleston, which means you’ll have more money in your pocket each month.
• In terms of homeownership, you’ll be able to get more for your money in Charleston.
  Home prices in Riverside are 14.9% higher than in Charleston.
• Income in Riverside is 23.2% higher than in Charleston, so you could earn more for doing the same job. The top employers in Riverside include Bourns, California Baptist University, and Riverside County Office of Education.
• The cost of living for a single person in Riverside is 51.5% lower than in Charleston. This includes routine expenses like utilities, groceries, clothing, and transportation.
• The cost of living for a family in Riverside is 29.0% lower than in Charleston.
• The unemployment rate in Riverside is 77.50% higher than in Charleston.
• You’ll spend less on retail and restaurants in Riverside, since the city’s sales taxes in Riverside are 2.78% lower than in Charleston.
• State income taxes in Riverside are 90.00% higher than in Charleston.

To put this in perspective, you would need around $1,456.42 in Riverside to maintain the same standard of life that you can have with $3,000.00 in Charleston.

How life is different in Charleston vs. Riverside

• The population of Riverside is about 111% greater than Charleston, so you may find more to see and do in your new surroundings. Of course, with more people can also come increased competition for jobs and housing.
• Riverside offers better access to buses and trains than Charleston, based on public transportation ratings. Riverside has a transit score of 5 out of 10 compared to 3 in Charleston. The higher the score, the more public transportation pickup and dropoff locations a city provides.
• You’ll find Riverside to be about as walkable as Charleston. The two cities have similar walkability scores of 43 and 40 respectively out of 100 in terms of how close housing is to businesses, recreational facilities, and jobs.
• Riverside and Charleston are similarly bike-friendly based on their comparable ratings of 49 and 50 respectively. Bike-friendliness scores between 50 and 100 indicate varying levels of infrastructure to support cyclists, including bike lanes and roadway connectivity. Cities with scores under 50 are considered more car-dependent.
• Riverside has a lower crime rate than Charleston based on scores of 40.24 and Charleston's 44.97, respectively. The crime index shows how safe a city is perceived to be. So, a lower score generally means less crime.
• You might find more confidence in your overall safety in Riverside than in Charleston, based on Riverside’s safety index of 59.76 versus 55.03 for Charleston. With this index, higher scores indicate more safety, particularly around how comfortable residents feel walking alone during the day and at night.
• The air quality in Riverside isn’t as good as it is in Charleston, so you may want to take precautions if you suffer from conditions like allergies or asthma. Riverside has an air quality rating of Moderate, and Charleston is considered to be good. Cities with good to moderate air quality may have varying levels of minor potential for health risks for certain people. Beyond the moderate rating, those health risks increase in severity and the amount of residents affected.