City comparison
Atlanta, GA is about 150 miles (225 km) from Augusta-Richmond County consolidated government (balance), GA in a straight line. By road, the drive is roughly 175 miles, or about 3 h behind the wheel at highway speeds.
Driving distance is a rough estimate (great-circle × 1.25); driving time assumes a 60 mph blended average. Real trips run 10–20% longer with stops.
A direct flight from Atlanta, GA to Augusta-Richmond County consolidated government (balance), GA takes about 17 min, covering roughly 150 miles in a straight line. Connecting itineraries with a layover typically add 1–3 hours.
Block-to-block estimate at ~500 mph cruise, including taxi, climb, and descent — what an airline would publish, not pure airborne time.
Atlanta, GA is on Central Time and Augusta-Richmond County consolidated government (balance), GA is on Eastern Time — a 1-hour difference. When it's noon in Atlanta, it's 1 p.m. in Augusta-Richmond County consolidated government (balance), which puts Atlanta 1 hours behind.
Standard-time offsets. Daylight saving applies in both cities for most of the year (exceptions: Hawaii and most of Arizona), and the gap between the two stays the same.
Atlanta has a population of 494,838, vs 201,615 in Augusta-Richmond County consolidated government (balance) — about 2.5× larger by population. By land area, Augusta-Richmond County consolidated government (balance) covers about 300 sq mi vs 135 sq mi for Atlanta.
Population from US Census ACS. Land area from the Census Gazetteer (city proper, excluding inland water).
Cost indices by category, with the US city average (100) marked.
Index: 100 = US city average. Lower is more affordable.
Side-by-side costs, salaries, and sub-category indices.
| Metric | Atlanta | Augusta-Richmond County consolidated government (balance) | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $1,512/mo | $1,023/mo | 47.8% higher in Atlanta |
| Median home value | $395,600 | $141,900 | 178.8% higher in Atlanta |
| Median household income | $77,655 | $50,492 | 53.8% higher in Atlanta |
| Groceries index | 100.3 | 96.5 | 3.9% higher in Atlanta |
| Utilities index | 96.1 | 89.7 | 7.1% higher in Atlanta |
| Transportation index | 97.0 | 98.7 | 1.7% higher in Augusta-Richmond County consolidated government (balance) |
| Healthcare index | 96.5 | 98.2 | 1.7% higher in Augusta-Richmond County consolidated government (balance) |
How much you'd need to earn in the other city to keep the same standard of living.
If you earn $100,000 in Atlanta, you'd need $83,679 in Augusta-Richmond County consolidated government (balance) to maintain your standard of living.
Climate, safety, and demographics side by side.
Augusta-Richmond County consolidated government (balance), GA is about 16.3% cheaper overall than Atlanta, GA, based on our cost-of-living index. Housing costs are roughly 52% higher in Atlanta than in Augusta-Richmond County consolidated government (balance). If you earn $80,000 in Atlanta, you'd need about $66,943 in Augusta-Richmond County consolidated government (balance) to keep the same standard of living.