Quick Facts About Pensacola
The home of the Blue Angels, cerulean seas and endless white sand beaches, it’s not hard to find something to love in Pensacola, Florida. This historic panhandle city on Florida’s northwestern coast was so fought over in its early days, it’s known as the City of Five Flags, and you’ll still see the influence of the earliest Spanish, French and British settlers here today.
Pensacola was built on industries like lumber and fishing, and today there is a diverse array of businesses from healthcare to technology. But it was the Navy whose legacy has had the clearest impact on the city’s contemporary economy. The Naval Air Station Pensacola, or NAS, supports nearly 24,000 jobs in the region, and it’s also helped make the city a major aerospace and defense hub.
Of course, it’s what lies beneath the skies that keeps people coming to Pensacola — for work and for play. The relaxing, island vibe of the city extends from the downtown core to the outermost banks, and whether you’re looking for a day of fishing, jet skiing or paddleboarding, these are some of the best beaches to explore.
Tourism brings two million visitors to Escambia County every year, and the placid Gulf Coast waters and sunny skies make Pensacola an easy city to fall for permanently, too. Pensacola’s charming downtown scene is set with historic buildings, fun boutiques and lively restaurants on Palafox Street, which takes you straight to the marina in Pensacola Bay. But, when you want to escape the crowds, you’re only moments away from the ocean wilderness of Gulf Islands National Seashore, which spans the Florida and Alabama coasts.
If you’re interested in moving to Pensacola, get a closer look at this city in the Florida panhandle below, where we’ll discuss the cost of living, the job market and the lifestyle.
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What Do You Get When Living in Pensacola?
Affordable Living on the Gulf Coast
Many people assume that coastal living is out of reach, but Pensacola might just surprise you. This popular city in Florida’s panhandle has lower housing and rental costs than most major cities in the state, including Miami, Orlando and Destin, and it has comparable costs to Jacksonville. The median home value in Pensacola is $276,500 and the median gross rent is just $1,209/month — both figures fall below the national and state averages. 63.5% of Pensacola residents own their own home, in line with national trends. With home values statewide averaging $325,000 and even the U.S. average now exceeding $300,000, Pensacola’s real estate market seems ever more appealing.
At $72,699, Pensacola’s median household income does lag a bit behind national earnings, which averaged $78,538 from 2019-2023. But, Pensacola residents bring home more than the average Floridian does, and their earnings also top the median in every aforementioned city except Destin. Like all Sunshine State-dwellers, Pensacola residents pay no state income tax — just one of the perks of being a Floridian. Some common household expenses may also be lower than average in Pensacola. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, those residing in the South spent less on food/beverages, housing, medical care, education and other goods and services than their national counterparts did in 2024.
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.
Booming Job Market and Diverse Economy
The greater Pensacola region has a robust workforce that draws on the city’s historic strengths in tourism, aerospace and defense. But the job market is also expanding in new sectors, like technology. Employment has remained steadily below the U.S. average for the past six months, standing at just 3.2% in December 2024.
But there is one area of the Pensacola economy that stands taller than the rest — the military. The Naval Air Station Pensacola (NAS) alone employs 7,400 civilians and 16,000 enlisted individuals. Other major employers include the Navy Federal Credit Union, Sacred Heart/Ascension, the University of West Florida, GE Wind Energy and Baptist Health Care, which is headquartered in the city.
The single largest industry in the region, though, is trade, transportation and healthcare, which employs 37,400 individuals. Education and health services is a close second, with its 34,500 employees, and the government is the third largest, supporting 30,900 jobs in the region. Professional and business services and leisure and hospitality are powerful forces in Pensacola, and each of these supplies more than 27,000 jobs in the greater metro area. Most industries experienced some growth over the past year. Manufacturing was the sole exception, and its losses were nominal — only a 1.4% decline.
Beautiful Year-Round Weather
It’s no secret that the sunny skies and warm weather are two of the things that make Pensacola such a popular place to live. The subtropical climate generally promises long, hot and humid summers and short, mild winters, with an average annual temperature of 69 F.
But 2025 rewrote the history books for this sunny, Florida city. On January 22, more than 7 inches of snow fell on Pensacola, and people and pets alike found the climatic turnabout to truly be fair play. Pro tip: boogie boards make terrific make-shift sleds. A typical Pensacola winter day will have temperatures in the 40s-60s, and the sunshine usually keeps any bitter winds at bay.
While this arctic air is unlikely to make an annual appearance, hurricanes are another story. Pensacola residents are still recovering from Hurricane Sally, the 2020 superstorm that inundated the panhandle with catastrophic rains and flooding. Summertime is also high time for regular thunderstorms, which dump more than seven inches a rain a month between June and September. Other months of the year are also reliably damp — close to 70 inches of rain fall annually in Pensacola.
Storms do offer some relief from the steamy temps, as daily highs usually hit the 90s F and above in the summer. But these intense events can also spawn tornadoes, so be sure you have a safe place to retreat in case one is in your area.
Pristine Beaches and Outdoor Adventures
Pensacola’s waterfront stretches for an amazing 50 miles, from the city shores of Pensacola Bay to the white sand beaches along the Gulf of Mexico. You can take in the tranquil vistas from the bustling Bayfront Parkway or from a more solitary perch in a nature preserve. Whatever kind of beach scene you’re looking for, this city has it.
Pensacola Beach is the most popular destination on the ocean, and the boardwalk is always busy with crowds looking for refreshment and a few beach mementos to take home. Fun events are scheduled all year long on the water, from the Polar Bear Plunge into the Santa Rosa Sound on New Year’s Day to the Krewe of Wrecks Mardi Gras Parade, the Art & Wine Fest and the Pensacola Beach Air Show. But Laguna’s Adventure Park makes any day feel like a special occasion here, with its ropes course, ziplines and go-karts. Want to direct your own adventure? Rent a jet ski or a paddle board, take a dolphin-watching cruise or just relax under an umbrella with your favorite drink and adventure vicariously through others.
One of the more daring activities you can take advantage of in these crystalline waters is wreck diving. Book a trip with an experienced scuba guide and you can tour decommissioned navy ships like the USS Oriskany, which was purposefully sunk to create an artificial reef. Some outfits also lead to lionfish hunting expeditions, and unlike other aquatic species, you never have to worry about overfishing these invasive predators. Even though their spines are venomous, the fish is delicious, and every one you (very carefully) pull out of the Gulf waters is good news for all the native inhabitants.
If you’re looking for a more of a getaway, Gulf Islands National Seashore offers an escape from the maddening crowds. One of the best spots in this NPS preserve is Perdido Key, an Edenic isle on the Florida/Alabama border where expansive beaches, a kayak launch, and a snorkeling reef make for an easy spot to take it easy. The Naval Live Oaks Area has more than seven miles of trails to hike, including a fully accessible one-miler, making it possible for everyone to enjoy the majestic woodlands. Two retired fortresses are also part of the park — Fort Pickens (mentioned above) and Fort Barrancas. Like a military palimpsest, this Civil War stronghold was built on top of previous citadels raised by the British, French and Spanish — three of the five flags that have flown over the city of Pensacola.
Pensacola isn’t far from other fun, coastal cities, either. Destin is only a little over an hour away, and party-centric Panama City is only a hundred miles east on I-98. And don’t overlook day trips to Alabama, either. Mobile is less than a 60-mile drive on I-10 and this historic, Southern city has so much to offer, from oyster bars to battleships. One of the most beautiful spots is the Bellingrath Gardens & Home, which has some of the most spectacular grounds in the entire region. Other spots not to miss are the Mobile Museum of Art, the Mobile Carnival Museum and the Clotilda exhibition at the Africatown Heritage House, which is part of the History Museum of Mobile.
Cultural and Historical Attractions
Pensacola isn’t just a beach town, of course — there’s also some serious culture here! Downtown Pensacola is filled with historic destinations, and between Seville Square and Plaza Ferdinand alone there are more than a dozen museums and landmarks, from the Pensacola Museum of Art to the African American Heritage Society. Get a feel for life in the Colonial era with a living history tour by the UWF Historic Trust, which will take you through 19th-century Victorian mansions, like the Dorr House, and multi-family dwellings like the Lavalle house, a French Creole cottage, or the Old Christ Church, which is actually one of the oldest houses of worship in the state of Florida.
The most forbidding of Pensacola’s historic treasures is Fort Pickens, a coastal megalith designed to produce a “wall of fire” should it come under assault. One of the most fascinating aspects of the fort’s history isn’t an international battle but an internal one. While enslaved men built and maintained the fort, the site eventually became a critical stop on the Underground Railroad. The fort is also infamous for detaining some of the highest-profile POWs of the day, including Geronimo. This site offers many invaluable lessons in U.S. history.
Because Pensacola was seen as such a critical site for defense, the U.S. Army chose it as a location for one of its Naval Air Stations, and the National Naval Aviation Museum celebrates this — and the history of flight — through amazing exhibits and experiences, which include an enormous collection of historic aircraft, flight simulators and cockpit trainers. But the biggest draw to this museum is outside, where the famous Blue Angels practice. You can see them take flight on select mornings throughout the year and then meet them in person at the museum afterward. What could be more thrilling…except maybe riding shotgun?
Kids have their very own spaces to love in this city. The Pensacola MESS Hall has STEM programming for all ages, and the Pensacola Children’s Museum has fun activities for the 8-and-under crowd, including StoryTyme with Grandma Jenkins and slime-making workshops.
When you just want a fun day of shopping and dining, though, downtown Pensacola does not disappoint. Spend the day perusing local boutiques and galleries on Palafox Street and then grab a bite and one of Pensacola’s local favorites. Restaurant Iron puts a Southern spin on flavors from around the world, from their pork belly bao buns with peach-ginger BBQ sauce to the chicken-fried venison in Andouille-jalapeno gravy. If you’re in a maritime mood, soak up that Pensacola sunset with some dockside dining at Jaco’s. It is hard to top their Seafood Acadian, which pairs shrimp and mahimahi with a crawfish-andouille etouffee. But when you want to prepare your own fare, hit the Palafox Market on Saturdays for the best local produce, meat and cheese plus handmade wares and antiques.
How to Move to Pensacola
If you are ready to move to sunny Pensacola, be sure you’ve selected the right professional moving company to handle your relocation. You can count on United Van Lines to make your move stress-free. Millions of families have trusted us with their cross-country, residential moves, and you can, too.
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United Van Lines has customized moving packages to handle anything your family needs. United’s professional, long-distance movers can help you move to Pensacola from any city in the U.S. Just look at our full-service moving packages, which can include packing, unpacking, storage services, debris removal, car shipping and more. We can take care of it all.
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Are you and your family making a local move in Pensacola? Moving within the Sunshine State? United Van Lines’ interstate Pensacola agents/movers can provide local moving services in the Pensacola area and in Florida independently under their businesses and brands.
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If you’re handling your own move to Pensacola, you can still take advantage of United Van Lines’ experience and expertise. Use our packing tips to ensure you’re protecting your belongings like a pro. And, before your to-do list gets out of hand, consult this professional moving checklist to keep your DIY move under control.
Looking for in-depth advice on moving? United Van Lines’ House Key magazine has exclusive tips on packing and settling in.
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