?WhereToHQ

Residential comparison · 13 facts

Bessemer, AL vs Homewood, AL

Compare the housing, tax, cost, income, safety, school, and climate facts that are available for both places. The table shows the numbers without declaring one city universally better.

A household earning $85,000 in Bessemer needs about $94,500 in Homewood to keep the same lifestyle.
Coming from Homewood, $85,000 of lifestyle costs about $75,500 in Bessemer.

A few differences

Bessemer vs Homewood · facet by facet
FacetBessemer, ALHomewood, AL
Median home price$135,900$558,500
2-bedroom rent$1,061/mo$1,471/mo
Property tax rate0.4%0.4%
State & local income tax4.41%4.41%
Sales tax9.3%9.3%
Cost of living index77106
Groceries index9797
Utilities$190/mo$190/mo
Median household income$39,613$94,485
Unemployment rate2.9%2.9%
Crime index55/10055/100
School rating4.3/104.3/10
Sunny days / year215 days215 days

Data: Census ACS 2024 · BLS · Tax Foundation 2024 brackets · HUD/Zillow · NOAA 1991–2020 · FEMA NRI · Values are shown as reported; no universal winner is implied.

Full profiles: Bessemer, AL · Homewood, AL
Questions & answers
Is Bessemer cheaper than Homewood?
Bessemer has the lower day-to-day cost index (77 vs 106 against a national 100). The other differences are shown facet by facet in the table.
What household income in Homewood equals $85,000 in Bessemer?
A household earning $85,000 in Bessemer needs about $94,500 in Homewood to keep the same lifestyle; coming the other way, $85,000 of Homewood lifestyle costs about $75,500 in Bessemer.