City comparison
Augusta-Richmond County consolidated government (balance), GA is about 650 miles (1,100 km) from Chicago, IL in a straight line. By road, the drive is roughly 850 miles, or about 14 hours 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 Augusta-Richmond County consolidated government (balance), GA to Chicago, IL takes about 1 h 19 min, covering roughly 650 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.
Augusta-Richmond County consolidated government (balance), GA is on Eastern Time and Chicago, IL is on Central Time — a 1-hour difference. When it's noon in Augusta-Richmond County consolidated government (balance), it's 11 a.m. in Chicago, which puts Augusta-Richmond County consolidated government (balance) 1 hours ahead.
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.
Chicago has a population of 2,721,914, vs 201,615 in Augusta-Richmond County consolidated government (balance) — about 13.5× larger by population. By land area, Augusta-Richmond County consolidated government (balance) covers about 300 sq mi vs 230 sq mi for Chicago.
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 | Augusta-Richmond County consolidated government (balance) | Chicago | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $1,023/mo | $1,314/mo | 28.4% higher in Chicago |
| Median home value | $141,900 | $304,500 | 114.6% higher in Chicago |
| Median household income | $50,492 | $71,673 | 41.9% higher in Chicago |
| Groceries index | 96.5 | 106.4 | 10.2% higher in Chicago |
| Utilities index | 89.7 | 84.4 | 6.3% higher in Augusta-Richmond County consolidated government (balance) |
| Transportation index | 98.7 | 100.3 | 1.7% higher in Chicago |
| Healthcare index | 98.2 | 100.2 | 2.1% higher in Chicago |
How much you'd need to earn in the other city to keep the same standard of living.
If you earn $100,000 in Augusta-Richmond County consolidated government (balance), you'd need $120,473 in Chicago to maintain your standard of living.
Climate, safety, and demographics side by side.
Augusta-Richmond County consolidated government (balance), GA is about 17% cheaper overall than Chicago, IL, based on our cost-of-living index. Housing costs are roughly 52% higher in Chicago than in Augusta-Richmond County consolidated government (balance). If you earn $80,000 in Augusta-Richmond County consolidated government (balance), you'd need about $96,378 in Chicago to keep the same standard of living.