Atlanta, GA vs Portland, ME
Moving from Atlanta to Portland? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($382,938 → $542,063 median home) and taxes.
Atlanta vs Portland 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 Atlanta, GA, you'd need about $103,854 in Portland, ME (+$3,854).
Livability — Atlanta, GA: 66 · Portland, ME: 58 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 2,677 sqft in Atlanta vs 1,568 sqft in Portland ($187 vs $319 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Atlanta, GA | Portland, ME | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $22,080 | $27,840 | +$5,760 |
| Groceries | $4,926 | $4,917 | −$10 |
| Transportation | $3,515 | $2,775 | −$740 |
| Utilities | $1,656 | $3,072 | +$1,416 |
| Insurance | $2,100 | $1,000 | −$1,100 |
| Taxes | $10,533 | $12,997 | +$2,464 |
| Total | $44,810 | $52,601 | +$7,790 |
Side by side
| Metric | Atlanta, GA | Portland, ME |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 100.5 | 104.4 |
| Unemployment rate | 5.04% | 3.37% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 6.9% | 5.2% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 42 | 42 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.72 | $5.94 |
| Median home price | $382,938 | $542,063 |
| Home price ÷ income | 4.6× | 6.4× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | -2.1% | 1.0% |
| Price per square foot | $187 | $319 |
| Median rent | $1,840 | $2,320 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 8.9% | 12.4% |
| Combined sales tax | 7.38% | 5.50% |
| Capital gains tax | 5.39% | 7.15% |
| Property tax rate | 0.85% | 1.14% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,400 | $8,000 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $9,500 | $12,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | None | 2.40% |
| Avg commute (min) | 32 | 25 |
| Home insurance / yr | $2,100 | $1,000 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,900 | $1,000 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $700 | $700 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 15.4 | 28.4 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.15 | 3.35 |
| Natural gas / mo | $74 | $78 |
| Water & sewer / mo | $123 | $86 |
| Home internet / mo | $88 | $71 |
| Violent crime /100k | 370 | 110 |
| Avg summer high °F | 89 | 80 |
| Avg winter low °F | 34 | 10 |
| Annual precipitation (in) | 50.4 | 43.6 |
| Annual snowfall (in) | 2.2 | 49.2 |
| Sunshine (% possible) | 60% | 48% |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 2 | 3 |