Population
Charleston
152,014
Palm Desert
51,551
Median Income
Charleston
$90,038
Palm Desert
$79,508
Home Value
Charleston
$469,100
Palm Desert
$491,600
Rent
Charleston
$1,632
Palm Desert
$1,717
Crime Rate
Charleston
3.58
Palm Desert
3.24
Cost of Living
Charleston
150.6
Palm Desert
148.4
Avg Temp
Charleston
N/A
Palm Desert
N/A
Unemployment
Charleston
3.4%
Palm Desert
6.1%
How Similar Are Charleston & Palm Desert?
Palm Desert is Charleston's #20 most similar city
4 of 10 key metrics match within 10%
Population
Charleston
152,014
Palm Desert
51,551
Charleston (152,014) is about 2.9x larger than Palm Desert (51,551).
Violent Crime
Charleston
3.58
Palm Desert
3.24
Both cities have similar violent crime — just a 9% difference.
Property Crime
Charleston
20.22
Palm Desert
28.27
Palm Desert has a 28% higher property crime than Charleston.
Political Leaning
Charleston
57.4%
Palm Desert
49.3%
Charleston leans Republican while Palm Desert leans Democratic.
Unemployment
Charleston
3.4%
Palm Desert
6.1%
Palm Desert has a 44% higher unemployment than Charleston.
Median Income
Charleston
$90,038
Palm Desert
$79,508
Charleston has a 12% higher median income than Palm Desert.
Home Values
Charleston
$469,100
Palm Desert
$491,600
Both cities have similar home values — just a 5% difference.
Education
Charleston
40.7%
Palm Desert
32.1%
Charleston has a 21% higher education than Palm Desert.
Demographics
Charleston
72.9%
Palm Desert
68.3%
Both cities have similar demographics — just a 6% difference.
Cost of Living
Charleston
150.6
Palm Desert
148.4
Both cities have similar cost of living — just a 1% difference.
4 out of 10 key metrics match within 10%. Charleston and Palm Desert share several key characteristics.
At a Glance
0
Charleston
0
Palm Desert
Charleston leads in 4 of 8 categories
Cost of Living & Affordability — Palm Desert leads
Source: City Stats Index / HUDPalm Desert scores 100.8 on the transportation index (100 = national avg) vs 137.6 in Charleston. Charleston has a fair market rent (2br) of $1,787 vs $2,201 in Palm Desert (19% lower). Charleston scores 191.5 on the housing index (100 = national avg) vs 213.3 in Palm Desert.
Overall Cost Index
Housing Index
Food Index
Transportation Index
Healthcare Index
Utilities Index
Living Wage (1 Adult)
Living Wage (Family of 4)
Fair Market Rent (1BR)
Fair Market Rent (2BR)
Housing Market
Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACSCharleston has a vacancy rate of 12.4% compared to 34.0% in Palm Desert. Charleston has a median property tax of $2,144 vs $4,502 in Palm Desert (52% lower). Palm Desert has a single-family homes of 67.9% compared to 54.8% in Charleston.
Median Home Value
Median Rent
Median Property Tax
Owner-Occupied
Vacancy Rate
Single-Family Homes
Jobs & Economy — Charleston leads
Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACSCharleston: 87,105 vs Palm Desert: 22,326 for labor force. Charleston has a unemployment rate of 3.4% compared to 6.1% in Palm Desert. Charleston has a work from home of 17.6% compared to 14.1% in Palm Desert.
Median Household Income
Per Capita Income
Poverty Rate
Unemployment Rate
Labor Force
Mean Commute
Work from Home
Private Sector
Government Sector
Crime & Safety — Charleston leads
Source: FBI UCRCharleston has a burglary rate (per 1k) of 1.40 compared to 4.46 in Palm Desert. Charleston has a property crime clearance of 23.3% compared to 14.2% in Palm Desert. Charleston has a robbery rate (per 1k) of 0.43 compared to 0.79 in Palm Desert.
Violent Crime Rate (per 1K)
Property Crime Rate (per 1K)
Murder Rate (per 1K)
Robbery Rate (per 1K)
Assault Rate (per 1K)
Burglary Rate (per 1K)
Larceny Rate (per 1K)
Violent Crime Clearance
Property Crime Clearance
Weather & Climate
Source: NOAA / Open-MeteoAvg Annual Temperature
Avg Annual High
Avg Annual Low
Sunny Days per Year
Annual Rainfall
Annual Snowfall
Avg Humidity
Schools & Education — Charleston leads
Source: NCES / U.S. Census BureauCharleston has a bachelor's degree or higher of 40.7% compared to 32.1% in Palm Desert. Charleston has a high school diploma or higher of 51.6% compared to 46.3% in Palm Desert.
Public Schools
Avg Student-Teacher Ratio
Colleges & Universities
Bachelor's Degree or Higher
High School Diploma or Higher
Demographics & Community
Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACSCharleston has a population of 152,014, about 2.9x the size of Palm Desert (51,551). Charleston skews younger with a median age of 36.1 vs 56.7.
Population
Median Age
Avg Household Size
Married Population
Foreign Born
White
Black
Hispanic
Asian
Charleston
Palm Desert
Healthcare
Source: CMS Hospital CompareCharleston: 4.3 vs Palm Desert: 3.5 for avg cms rating (out of 5). Palm Desert: 5 vs Charleston: 4 for with emergency services.
Nearby Hospitals
Avg CMS Rating (out of 5)
With Emergency Services
Transportation & Commute — Charleston leads
Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACSCharleston has a bicycle of 1.5% compared to 0.2% in Palm Desert. Charleston has a public transit of 0.9% compared to 0.7% in Palm Desert. Charleston has a work from home of 17.6% compared to 14.1% in Palm Desert.
Mean Commute Time
Drive Alone
Public Transit
Bicycle
Work from Home
Airports
Cities Similar to Charleston, SC
Compare Charleston against its closest statistical matches across demographics, income, crime, health, and more.
City Comparison
8-axis fingerprint: population, income, housing, crime, education, age, climate, and cost of living. Click legend items to toggle.