Population
Charleston
152,014
Sparks
109,106
Median Income
Charleston
$90,038
Sparks
$86,979
Home Value
Charleston
$469,100
Sparks
$455,900
Rent
Charleston
$1,632
Sparks
$1,651
Crime Rate
Charleston
3.58
Sparks
3.95
Cost of Living
Charleston
150.6
Sparks
144.8
Avg Temp
Charleston
N/A
Sparks
N/A
Unemployment
Charleston
3.4%
Sparks
5.7%
How Similar Are Charleston & Sparks?
Sparks is Charleston's #14 most similar city
4 of 10 key metrics match within 10%
Population
Charleston
152,014
Sparks
109,106
Charleston has a 28% larger population than Sparks.
Violent Crime
Charleston
3.58
Sparks
3.95
Both cities have similar violent crime — just a 10% difference.
Property Crime
Charleston
20.22
Sparks
25.84
Sparks has a 22% higher property crime than Charleston.
Political Leaning
Charleston
57.4%
Sparks
48.3%
Charleston leans Republican while Sparks leans Democratic.
Unemployment
Charleston
3.4%
Sparks
5.7%
Sparks has a 40% higher unemployment than Charleston.
Median Income
Charleston
$90,038
Sparks
$86,979
Both cities have similar median income — just a 3% difference.
Home Values
Charleston
$469,100
Sparks
$455,900
Both cities have similar home values — just a 3% difference.
Education
Charleston
40.7%
Sparks
17.9%
Charleston's education is significantly higher than Sparks's — 56% difference.
Demographics
Charleston
72.9%
Sparks
62.0%
Charleston has a 15% higher demographics than Sparks.
Cost of Living
Charleston
150.6
Sparks
144.8
Both cities have similar cost of living — just a 4% difference.
4 out of 10 key metrics match within 10%. Charleston and Sparks share several key characteristics.
At a Glance
0
Charleston
0
Sparks
Charleston leads in 4 of 8 categories
Cost of Living & Affordability — Sparks leads
Source: City Stats Index / HUDSparks scores 109.7 on the transportation index (100 = national avg) vs 137.6 in Charleston. Sparks has a fair market rent (1br) of $1,489 vs $1,630 in Charleston (9% lower). Charleston has a fair market rent (2br) of $1,787 vs $1,870 in Sparks.
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 ACSSparks has a vacancy rate of 7.1% compared to 12.4% in Charleston. Sparks has a single-family homes of 67.8% compared to 54.8% in Charleston. Sparks has a owner-occupied of 59.9% compared to 55.6% 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 has a work from home of 17.6% compared to 9.5% in Sparks. Charleston: 87,105 vs Sparks: 59,405 for labor force. Charleston has a per capita income of $58,583 vs $40,192 in Sparks (46% higher).
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 violent crime clearance of 63.8% compared to 39.3% in Sparks. Charleston has a burglary rate (per 1k) of 1.40 compared to 3.01 in Sparks. Charleston has a robbery rate (per 1k) of 0.43 compared to 0.56 in Sparks.
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 17.9% in Sparks. Charleston has a high school diploma or higher of 51.6% compared to 35.3% in Sparks.
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 1.4x the size of Sparks (109,106).
Population
Median Age
Avg Household Size
Married Population
Foreign Born
White
Black
Hispanic
Asian
Charleston
Sparks
Healthcare — Charleston leads
Source: CMS Hospital CompareCharleston: 4.3 vs Sparks: 3.8 for avg cms rating (out of 5).
Nearby Hospitals
Avg CMS Rating (out of 5)
With Emergency Services
Transportation & Commute
Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACSCharleston has a bicycle of 1.5% compared to 0.1% in Sparks. Charleston has a work from home of 17.6% compared to 9.5% in Sparks. Sparks has a public transit of 2.0% compared to 0.9% in Charleston.
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.