?WhereToHQ

Residential comparison · 13 facts

Burlington, NC vs Chapel Hill, NC

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 Burlington needs about $91,500 in Chapel Hill to keep the same lifestyle.
Coming from Chapel Hill, $85,000 of lifestyle costs about $78,500 in Burlington.

A few differences

Burlington vs Chapel Hill · facet by facet
FacetBurlington, NCChapel Hill, NC
Median home price$199,200$613,700
2-bedroom rent$1,001/mo$1,616/mo
Property tax rate0.82%0.82%
State & local income tax3.15%3.15%
Sales tax7%7%
Cost of living index83115
Groceries index9898
Utilities$155/mo$155/mo
Median household income$56,880$85,989
Unemployment rate3.8%3.8%
Crime index48/10048/100
School rating6.0/106.0/10
Sunny days / year213 days213 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: Burlington, NC · Chapel Hill, NC
Questions & answers
Is Burlington cheaper than Chapel Hill?
Burlington has the lower day-to-day cost index (83 vs 115 against a national 100). The other differences are shown facet by facet in the table.
What household income in Chapel Hill equals $85,000 in Burlington?
A household earning $85,000 in Burlington needs about $91,500 in Chapel Hill to keep the same lifestyle; coming the other way, $85,000 of Chapel Hill lifestyle costs about $78,500 in Burlington.