Anchorage, AK vs San Juan, PR
Moving from Anchorage to San Juan? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($422,103 → $350,000 median home) and taxes.
Anchorage vs San Juan at a glance
Bars scaled to the range across all 200 metros; labels show actual values.
To keep the same standard of living as $100,000 in Anchorage, AK, you'd need about $93,658 in San Juan, PR (−$6,342).
Livability — Anchorage, AK: 49 · San Juan, PR: 56 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 2,132 sqft in Anchorage vs 2,500 sqft in San Juan ($235 vs $200 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Anchorage, AK | San Juan, PR | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $21,240 | $18,000 | −$3,240 |
| Groceries | $5,224 | $5,000 | −$224 |
| Transportation | $3,350 | $2,960 | −$390 |
| Utilities | $2,952 | $1,728 | −$1,224 |
| Insurance | $1,000 | $1,200 | +$200 |
| Taxes | $4,919 | $37,720 | +$32,801 |
| Total | $38,685 | $66,608 | +$27,923 |
Side by side
| Metric | Anchorage, AK | San Juan, PR |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 106.8 | 100.0 |
| Unemployment rate | 5.62% | 13.00% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | -0.0% | -5.5% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 26 | 49 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $6.08 | $5.69 |
| Median home price | $422,103 | $350,000 |
| Home price ÷ income | 4.5× | 13.0× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 5.7% | 3.0% |
| Price per square foot | $235 | $200 |
| Median rent | $1,770 | $1,500 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 4.6% | 11.0% |
| Combined sales tax | 1.82% | 11.50% |
| Capital gains tax | None | 33.00% |
| Property tax rate | 1.24% | 0.52% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $9,500 | $5,000 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $12,000 | $6,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | None | None |
| Avg commute (min) | 23 | 30 |
| Home insurance / yr | $1,000 | $1,200 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,300 | $1,200 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $650 | $1,300 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $800 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 27.4 | 16.0 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.90 | 3.40 |
| Violent crime /100k | 760 | 350 |
| Avg summer high °F | 65 | 88 |
| Avg winter low °F | 5 | 72 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 2 | 2 |