Is Knoxville cheaper than Winston-Salem?

They are about even — the overall cost of living in the Knoxville and Winston-Salem metros is within 3% of each other (BEA Regional Price Parities), so neither is meaningfully cheaper.

Which has higher household income, Knoxville or Winston-Salem?

Knoxville has the higher median household income — $74,184 versus $65,903 (U.S. Census Bureau, ACS), about 13% more.

Does a paycheck go further in Knoxville or Winston-Salem?

A paycheck stretches further in Knoxville. Adjusted for local prices, the median income is worth $80,139 there versus $71,600 in Winston-Salem.

Which has cheaper rent, Knoxville or Winston-Salem?

Winston-Salem has cheaper rent — a median of $1,102/mo versus $1,219/mo (U.S. Census Bureau, ACS).

Knoxville vs Winston-Salem

Metro-area medians — Knoxville, TN Metro Area vs Winston-Salem, NC Metro Area — not the cities proper.

Knoxville and Winston-Salem are evenly matched, each taking 4 of the clearly-decided measures.

Knoxville and Winston-Salem cost about the same to live in, but Knoxville households earn about 13% more. Adjusted for local prices, a typical paycheck stretches further in Knoxville.

Their widest everyday difference: Knoxville has the tighter job market — 3.1% unemployment versus 3.4%.

For your salary & household

Enter your pay and household size to see what it's really worth here — the numbers update live and the link stays shareable.

Annual salary (gross)

Household size

Knoxville, TN

$61,314

take-home / yr · 18% to tax

$66,235

real value after local prices

Winston-Salem, NC

$58,668

take-home / yr · 22% to tax

$63,740

real value after local prices

On $75,000 for just you, Knoxville leaves you about $2,496/yr better off after tax and local prices.

Take-home estimates a single filer taking the standard deduction (2025 federal brackets, FICA, and state income tax) and isn't tax advice. “Real value” rebases take-home to average U.S. prices using the BEA cost-of-living index; the per-person figure uses the OECD square-root equivalence scale.

Measure

Knoxville

Winston-Salem

Livability (CityLedger)

55/100

46/100

Cost of living (price level, US = 100)

92.6

92.0

Cost-adjusted income (pay's real value)

$80,139

$71,600

Median household income

$74,184

$65,903

Median rent

$1,219/mo

$1,102/mo

Median home value

$351,400

$270,700

Unemployment

3.1%

3.4%

Bachelor's degree or higher

34.2%

33.4%

Average commute

24.7 min

23.8 min

Air quality (median AQI)

Avg temperature

59°F

60°F

Choose Knoxville for

+ Livability (CityLedger)
+ Cost-adjusted income (pay's real value)
+ Median household income
+ Unemployment

Full Knoxville profile →

Choose Winston-Salem for

+ Median rent
+ Median home value
+ Average commute
+ Air quality (median AQI)

Full Winston-Salem profile →

More comparisons

Metros closest to Knoxville and Winston-Salem on cost, income, size, and education.

Knoxville vs Greenville→Knoxville vs New Orleans→Knoxville vs Louisville→Winston-Salem vs Greensboro→Winston-Salem vs Akron→Winston-Salem vs Dayton→

Knoxville vs Winston-Salem — frequently asked

Is Knoxville cheaper than Winston-Salem?: They are about even — the overall cost of living in the Knoxville and Winston-Salem metros is within 3% of each other (BEA Regional Price Parities), so neither is meaningfully cheaper.
Which has higher household income, Knoxville or Winston-Salem?: Knoxville has the higher median household income — $74,184 versus $65,903 (U.S. Census Bureau, ACS), about 13% more.
Does a paycheck go further in Knoxville or Winston-Salem?: A paycheck stretches further in Knoxville. Adjusted for local prices, the median income is worth $80,139 there versus $71,600 in Winston-Salem.
Which has cheaper rent, Knoxville or Winston-Salem?: Winston-Salem has cheaper rent — a median of $1,102/mo versus $1,219/mo (U.S. Census Bureau, ACS).