Moving to Fort Lauderdale: A Guide to Cost of Living, Economy and More

Fort Lauderdale at a Glance 

Sea breezes, shopping meccas and serious culture, too — anyway you look at it, there’s a lot to love about life in Fort Lauderdale. This South Florida city on the Atlantic coast is both a tourist hub and a popular permanent residence, thanks to the tropical weather and the numerous amenities. It’s a quick drive up the coast to West Palm Beach and an even shorter one down I-95 to reach Miami. But with the ocean at your front door and the Everglades in your backyard, you’ll never have a reason to tire of this fun city.  

As the seat of Broward County, where nearly 2 million people reside, Fort Lauderdale is a regional hub. But with only 184,255 spread out over its 35 square miles, the city feels vast and spacious compared to Miami, where there are more than half a million residents — that’s more than 12,000 per square mile.  

Thanks to its extensive network of canals, Fort Lauderdale earned itself bragging rights as the Venice of America, despite the existence of that Italian-inspired beach on the SoCal coastline and a noticeable lack of gondoliers in Fort Lauderdale. Personally, we would have encroached on a closer city’s moniker — looking at you, New York, NY — as Florida, FL just has such a nice ring. But there are a significant number of boats in this coastal enclave — Fort Lauderdale is, after all, the yachting capital of the world, and deep-sea fishing is a popular pastime in the area.  

The region’s also gotten grabby with northern California’s nicknames. The high number of IT businesses in South Florida has led officials to declare this area the Internet Coast, and the 6,000 tech companies here are kicking up some serious digital waves. But the bread and butter of this beachside city is trade, transportation and tourism, thanks to the Atlantic Ocean, the Intercoastal Waterway and Port Everglades — the deepest in the state.  

When you’re not working, you can be snorkeling at Fort Lauderdale Beach, shopping at Las Olas or playing I spy with alligators in the Everglades. Remember that when you play games with alligators, the gators usually win. The Museum of Discovery and Science is a favorite destination for the kid crowd, but there also are institutions dedicated to art, athletic achievement and even firefighting in this city, so there will be plenty to do when the sun hides behind the clouds.  

If you’re thinking of moving to FL, FL, you’ll want to consider the weather, the job market, the cost of living and whether there are things do in the city that you and your family will enjoy. Our moving guide to Fort Lauderdale covers it all — the good, the bad and the sunburned.  

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Live, Work and Play in Fort Lauderdale  

Weather 

The weather in Fort Lauderdale is both the best and worst thing about the city. When the rest of the nation is snowed in, fighting back blistering winds and freezing rain, and you are sipping a tropical mocktail in your flip-flops and sarong, enjoying the warm glow of the noonday winter sun, then you are experiencing Fort Lauderdale at its best.  

Fort Lauderdale rarely sees temperatures below freezing. From December through February, the thermometer usually fluctuates from the upper fifties to the mid-70s F, but the mercury will periodically creep down into the 40s F when residents aren’t looking.   

For a city in the so-called Sunshine State, Fort Lauderdale is a very rainy place. An average of 63 inches falls each year here, and 2023 drowned this coastal beauty in more than 113 inches. Every month will experience some rainy weather, but the spring and summer are the peak season for moisture. Afternoon thunderstorms are common from April-September, but these frequently make for dramatic sunsets, with fuchsia and salmon skies, forested with dramatic cumulus clouds and streaked with wispy cirrus. Expect the summer to last for at least five months, during which time you will experience an ungodly variety of humidity. This is not the persistent New England damp nor the muggy, radiating Midwestern wet but the steam room of the actual devil. This is when you will pray to the gods of air conditioning, cool tile floors and boozy slushies. Please pass the margaritas. 

Fall is the real question mark in Fort Lauderdale. Although the temperatures can be blissfully mild and many seasons pass uneventfully, the threat of hurricanes is ever-increasing, driving up housing costs and making evacuation orders more common. Avoiding flood-prone areas, living far from the shoreline and investing in high-quality hurricane glass for your windows can help. 

Cost of Living

From a pocketbook standpoint, the best thing about life in Florida is that residents pay no income tax to the state. There is also no estate or inheritance tax, so you can spoil your grandkids rotten when you die. Property taxes are on the high side, however, and with the ever-increasing threat of hurricanes and floods, insurance rates across the state have priced some people out of the market entirely. Maybe little Maddie and Brayden can make do with slightly slimmer piggy banks after all … 

Housing costs and rental costs in Fort Lauderdale fall in the center of the regional market. The median home value in Fort Lauderdale is $455,600, higher than Hollywood and West Palm Beach but lower than Miami and Boca Raton. The median gross rent is $1,776/month and also falls in the middle of the pack, but it tops the state average by more than $200. Home ownership rates in Fort Lauderdale lag behind state and national trends, and roughly 54% of individuals here own their own homes.  

Incomes in Fort Lauderdale are in line with rates nationwide. The median household income in the city is $79,935 — several thousand above the Florida state average — affording residents a bit of cushion to manage the higher cost of living in the city.  

Please note: We are not tax experts and are not offering tax advice, other than you should consider obtaining additional information and advice from your legal and/or financial advisers who are fully aware of your individual circumstances.  

Economy

If you are considering a move to Fort Lauderdale for your career, you’ll find a diverse workforce and low unemployment in the Fort Lauderdale-Pompano-Deerfield Beach region. More than 945,000 individuals make up the nonfarm civilian labor force in the area, where global trade and tourists have molded a robust regional economy, one that has sustained a low unemployment rate of 3.4% from June through November 2024.  

With 216,000 employees, the largest industry in the area is trade, transportation and utilities. The waterways and Port Everglades — the deepest port in the state — keep these industrial sectors in the top employment position. But the city’s corporate arena is no less impressive. As of November 2024, 172,000 individuals worked in professional and business services, financial activities employed 73,000 and information employed 20,000. Healthcare and tourism are both powerful industries in the region — education and health services support 125,000 jobs and Leisure & Hospitality support 99,000. 

Many industries saw modest gains between November of 2023 and 2024. Other services expanded by nearly 9%, Construction was up by 4.2% and the government grew by 4%. Broward Health and the Broward County Public Schools are both key employers in the region, but several major corporations are also based in Fort Lauderdale, including Amerijet, AutoNation, DHL Solutions Americas, Doroni Aerospace, Heico, JetBlue Travel Products, Spirit Airlines and Stemtech International.  

Things to Do 

Beaches and the Outdoors 

The Fort Lauderdale sun shines bright on 24 miles of white sand beaches, and between the salty shoreline and the Everglades, there is so much to do here outside. Fort Lauderdale Beach is the prime destination for lounging, beachcombing and watersports in the city, but there are different scenes up and down the Atlantic coast, from Miami’s famous South Beach to Boca Raton, and Gulf cities like Naples can be easily reached on I-75, which cuts through the Everglades by way of the Big Cypress National Preserve. Sea kayaks, jet skis, parasails and kiteboards are all a great way to have fun in the surf, whether you’re an ocean newbie or an intrepid seafarer.  

A little way inland, you’ll find Birch State Park, a wonderful wilderness for biking, hiking, skating and canoeing. The network of protective mangroves and the magnificent banyan trees are one of the main attractions here. Draped with ropey prop roots, these trees do it all — prevent erosion, trap nutrients and look positively gorgeous.  

When you live in the yachting capital of the world, fishing is bound to be one of the most popular waterfront activities. Book a charter for a deep-sea adventure, where you might just reel in a tasty grouper or a powerful swordfish for dinner. Once you’ve caught the boating bug, you might just long for a watercraft of your own. Check out the latest speedboats, superyachts and personal submarines at the Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show (FLIBS). 2024 marked the 65^th year of FLIBS, and 100,000+ attendees enjoyed nearly a week of aquatic entertainment and lavish culinary experiences.  

Indoor Destinations 

Fort Lauderdale is no stranger to indoor fun and culture, either, mind you. Shopping specialists will find multiple meccas beckoning their attention, especially the sprawling Sawgrass Mills Mall — the largest single-story outlet of its kind in the country. But when you tire of trudging bags full of goodies along sunny corridors, why not pop into a museum? Just steps from the restaurants and shops at Las Olas Boulevard, the NSU Art Museum has a fabulous small collection of dynamic works by Andy Warhol, Kara Walker, Philip Guston, Leonora Carrington and many other important artists.  

While Miami usually beats out its sister city to the north on quirk and unconventionality, FL, FL has plenty of unusual sites all its own. There are hyper-specific institutions to visit, like the Fort Lauderdale Fire & Safety Museum, which boasts of being the state’s “hottest” attraction. On the cooler side of the spectrum, there’s the International Swimming Hall of Fame, where you can celebrate international aquatic champions like Natalie Coughlin, Laura Wilkinson and Michael Phelps and contemplate diving from their new 27-meter-high platform (gulp!). And, when you want to explore a subject that should be protected from both fire and water, there’s the Bienes Museum of the Modern BooBook. Located in the Main Library in downtown Fort Lauderdale, this extraordinary collection of rare books, manuscripts and artifacts will be loved by bibliophiles and casual readers alike.  

Then, there’s the Bonnet House Museum & Gardens — one of South Florida’s most unusual estates. Once the home of artist Frederic Clay Bartlett, no surface of this 1920 tropical residence — indoors or out — has been left untouched by the artist’s gaze. But we should really say artists. Both of Bartlett’s wives (the first died tragically young from breast cancer) contributed to the design and décor, working with Bartlett on murals and independently on their own fine works.   

Moving to Fort Lauderdale Soon? Let Mayflower Get You There 

If you’re ready to move to Fort Lauderdale, finding the right professional moving company should be your first priority. Since 1927, Americans have relied on Mayflower’s professional movers to help them move to cities across the U.S. We’re proud to be the nation’s most trusted mover, and our nationwide network can help you move to Fort Lauderdale from anywhere in the U.S. Whether you’re moving long-distance or from another area of the city, Mayflower can guide you Every Step of the Way®.  

Get a quote today on moving to Fort Lauderdale. 

Moving cross-country to Fort Lauderdale? Mayflower’s long-distance movers are here for you. We can provide you with a personal moving coordinator and custom, full-service moving packages. Our long-distance moving services can include packing and unpacking, car-shipping and storage, debris removal and more. All the details of your move are available 24/7 through the Mayflower Move Portal. 

Making a local move? Our Florida movers and movers in Fort Lauderdale provide local moving services independently under their own brands and business names.  

Handling your own move to Fort Lauderdale? Mayflower’s online moving resources can help you approach packing like a pro. Follow our moving checklist and planner to keep yourself on target and on budget.  

However you choose to move to Fort Lauderdale, Welcome HOME magazine will be your new BFF. This exclusive, digital guide to moving can guide you through all the stages of the moving process, from making packing lists to arranging furniture in your new home. See our top tips on helping your family settle in.  

Get a moving quote for Fort Lauderdale, FL. 

Still not sure which city you want to move to? Want to learn more about the Southeast or the Sunshine State before you pack your bags? Use Mayflower’s city guides and state guides to help narrow down the list of cities you’re interested in. Our Moving Guide to Florida will give you an inside look at coastal life, and you’ll find guides to many other cities in the Sunshine State, from Miami to Jacksonville to Orlando.