North Carolina vs Washington

Head-to-head homesteading comparison across taxes, land, climate, laws, safety & more

North Carolina

Rank #13

Overall Winner

Overall Score

69.2

Category Wins

6/10

Washington

Rank #31

Overall Score

64.6

Category Wins

2/10

Quick Comparison

Winner highlighted per category

0.84%

Property Tax

0.94%

Cost of Living

112

$4,400

Farm Land $/Acre

$4,700

230 days

Growing Season

210 days

80"

Annual Rainfall

100"

7/10

Soil Quality

7/10

Safety (Rural)

7/10

8/10

Gun Friendly

6/10

4.4 hrs

Solar (PSH)

3.8 hrs

85%

Broadband

89%

North Carolina Edges Out Washington Overall

With an overall homesteading score of 69.2 vs 64.6, North Carolina comes out ahead in our balanced analysis — winning 6 out of 10 key categories. But the best state for you depends on what matters most.

Key differences: North Carolina offers cheaper farmland at $4,400/acre vs $4,700/acre. North Carolina has a longer growing season (230 vs 210 days). North Carolina has lower property taxes (0.84% vs 0.94%).

Scroll down to the full comparison table for a deep dive into every metric, or use our ranking tool to weight these factors by what matters most to you.

Full Data Comparison

Side-by-side comparison of selected states across homesteading metrics
Data Point	North Carolina NC	Washington WA
Taxes & Cost
	Yes	No
	4.25%	—
	7.5%	9.22%
	0.84%	0.94%
	99	112
Land & Building
	$4,400	$4,700
	Yes (Statewide)	Yes (Statewide)
	Permitted with local zoning approval; growing acceptance	Permitted with zoning approval; increasingly allowed
Climate & Growing
	7a-8b	8a-10a
	230	210
	80"	100"
	7	7
	4	5
	5	1
Water & Energy
	Permitted	Permitted
	4.4	3.8
	Yes	Yes
Laws & Freedom
	Minimal	Minimal
	8	6
	Very strong	Strong
	Illegal for human consumption (herdshare/pet milk only)	Permitted for raw milk operations with licensing
	Yes	Yes
Safety & Healthcare
	393	388
	44%	44%
Demographics & Community
	217	106
	23%	17%
	85%	89%
Business
	#15	#22
	$125/yr	$180/yr
	3.5%	3.9%

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