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Residential comparison · 13 facts

Jacksonville, NC vs Wilmington, 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 Jacksonville needs about $90,500 in Wilmington to keep the same lifestyle.
Coming from Wilmington, $85,000 of lifestyle costs about $79,500 in Jacksonville.

A few differences

Jacksonville vs Wilmington · facet by facet
FacetJacksonville, NCWilmington, NC
Median home price$210,100$420,000
2-bedroom rent$1,146/mo$1,650/mo
Property tax rate0.82%0.75%
State & local income tax3.15%3.15%
Sales tax7%7%
Cost of living index86100
Groceries index98101
Utilities$155/mo$150/mo
Median household income$57,697$60,000
Unemployment rate3.8%3.7%
Crime index48/10047/100
School rating6.0/106.0/10
Sunny days / year213 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: Jacksonville, NC · Wilmington, NC
Questions & answers
Is Jacksonville cheaper than Wilmington?
Jacksonville has the lower day-to-day cost index (86 vs 100 against a national 100). The other differences are shown facet by facet in the table.
What household income in Wilmington equals $85,000 in Jacksonville?
A household earning $85,000 in Jacksonville needs about $90,500 in Wilmington to keep the same lifestyle; coming the other way, $85,000 of Wilmington lifestyle costs about $79,500 in Jacksonville.