https://www.nerdwallet.com/cost-of-living-calculator

That assumes the exact same expenses. For instance, if you live in DC, you don't need a car. People's goals for housing vary widely. I'd just find housing plus food, etc. then add taxes. The lower transportation burden can actually make DC more affordable than you might think (though it's higher than a lot of places)

You can do it, but your rent will likely be around your biweekly pay. So up to you if that's comfortable or not. And no you don't need a car.

Only if your definition of "comfortable" includes roomates. Otherwise you're looking at >50% of your income going into rent.

Tbh I don’t think so, well comfortably without roomates

It’s doable if you get roommate in a row house.

Comfortably, no. Rent will be 60% of your take-home pay unless you plan to rent a room. Minimally, you can get by but it will be really tight due to the cost of living or for the occasional fun night out or luxury.

Only if “comfortably” means living like a college student in perpetuity

Do you have any savings/debt?

no debt, savings: 10k

As someone who loves living in the city, going out/eating out basically spending money all the time, if I wasn’t into those things I would probably not want to live in DC. I don’t think it’s worth not being able to save/invest more for the future. I would recommend living in Maryland off the red line somewhere. I’m guessing that if you’re talking about living near 20-30 year olds that you’d want some kind of social/dating life, and I’m sure you can find that in Maryland or just commuting to DC from MD

I dunno - I don’t go out to eat much and don’t go to bars and I love living right in the center of it all. There’s so much joy I get from being surrounded by people walking dogs, easy access to tons of events, walking through gorgeous streets, park hangs, concerts…

It might help people be able to give you advice if you have a specific budget you plan on sticking with. Being “comfortable” is difficult to define, but people will be able to say whether its realistic for you to pay X for rent, Y for groceries, Z for transportation, et c every month depending on the area you want to live in.

I moved here from a town where my rent was $450 per month in 2020, so budgeting for city life was a major adjustment for me. I used to not spend much money on entertainment because there was never anything going on. Now that I live somewhere where there’s a million things to do, I spend a lot more on entertainment (mostly concerts). It would suck to move somewhere like DC and then never be able to go anywhere with an entry fee because you’re spending 90% of your income on necessities. Even if you’re fine living that way now, its different when your favorite singer is coming to a concert venue 2 miles from your apartment. (This is assuming you’re moving from somewhere with a lower cost of living, not Manhattan or something)

Moving from a cheaper COL to a more expensive one, while keeping the same pay makes no sense. 0/10 would not recommend.

Check out Southwest. Look for a two bedroom studio with either one or two bathrooms. With your take home pay, I’d say you should have a roommate. So, you’d spilt the rent. That means, you might be able to find a place in SW for around $1000 per month.

With the rest of your take home pay you could save towards buying a property, if you like the city. Also, you’d still have a good amount of take home pay to use for entertainment purposes. Should you want a car, you still could afford one with a small down payment, and minimal monthly cost. Although if you get a car, expect to have to pay for parking.

Can you just get the cost of living without compassing to another city?