Austin, TX vs Manchester, NH
Moving from Austin to Manchester? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($428,524 → $526,340 median home) and taxes.
Austin vs Manchester 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 Austin, TX, you'd need about $107,475 in Manchester, NH (+$7,475).
Livability — Austin, TX: 70 · Manchester, NH: 62 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 2,450 sqft in Austin vs 1,710 sqft in Manchester ($204 vs $292 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Austin, TX | Manchester, NH | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $19,620 | $25,632 | +$6,012 |
| Groceries | $4,647 | $4,935 | +$289 |
| Transportation | $3,675 | $2,955 | −$720 |
| Utilities | $1,836 | $2,940 | +$1,104 |
| Insurance | $3,600 | $1,000 | −$2,600 |
| Taxes | $9,558 | $6,681 | −$2,877 |
| Total | $42,936 | $44,143 | +$1,208 |
Side by side
| Metric | Austin, TX | Manchester, NH |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 98.3 | 105.6 |
| Unemployment rate | 4.30% | 3.69% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 14.8% | 4.0% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 52 | 37 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.59 | $6.01 |
| Median home price | $428,524 | $526,340 |
| Home price ÷ income | 4.6× | 5.5× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | -6.0% | 2.2% |
| Price per square foot | $204 | $292 |
| Median rent | $1,635 | $2,136 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 8.6% | 9.6% |
| Combined sales tax | 8.20% | 0.00% |
| Capital gains tax | None | None |
| Property tax rate | 1.71% | 1.88% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,800 | $7,800 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $9,500 | $15,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | None | 1.80% |
| Avg commute (min) | 27 | 27 |
| Home insurance / yr | $3,600 | $1,000 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $2,100 | $1,200 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $900 | $650 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 17.0 | 27.2 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.00 | 3.25 |
| Violent crime /100k | 430 | 120 |
| Avg summer high °F | 96 | 81 |
| Avg winter low °F | 38 | 10 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 2 | 3 |