Boise City, ID vs Boston, MA
Moving from Boise City to Boston? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($496,288 → $741,868 median home) and taxes.
Boise City vs Boston 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 Boise City, ID, you'd need about $117,135 in Boston, MA (+$17,135).
Livability — Boise City, ID: 68 · Boston, MA: 48 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 1,864 sqft in Boise City vs 1,146 sqft in Boston ($268 vs $436 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Boise City, ID | Boston, MA | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $22,044 | $38,532 | +$16,488 |
| Groceries | $4,790 | $5,040 | +$250 |
| Transportation | $3,090 | $3,210 | +$120 |
| Utilities | $1,368 | $3,180 | +$1,812 |
| Insurance | $1,300 | $1,800 | +$500 |
| Taxes | $10,170 | $17,694 | +$7,524 |
| Total | $42,761 | $69,455 | +$26,694 |
Side by side
| Metric | Boise City, ID | Boston, MA |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 94.2 | 110.4 |
| Unemployment rate | 3.29% | 5.02% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 13.9% | 2.9% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 54 | 43 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.36 | $6.28 |
| Median home price | $496,288 | $741,868 |
| Home price ÷ income | 6.4× | 6.9× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 0.3% | 1.6% |
| Price per square foot | $268 | $436 |
| Median rent | $1,837 | $3,211 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 10.7% | 11.5% |
| Combined sales tax | 6.03% | 6.25% |
| Capital gains tax | 5.80% | 9.00% |
| Property tax rate | 0.59% | 1.14% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,200 | $8,200 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $8,500 | $21,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | None | 2.25% |
| Avg commute (min) | 23 | 31 |
| Home insurance / yr | $1,300 | $1,800 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,100 | $1,500 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $500 | $800 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $300 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 12.7 | 29.4 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.70 | 3.30 |
| Violent crime /100k | 240 | 330 |
| Avg summer high °F | 90 | 82 |
| Avg winter low °F | 24 | 22 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 2 | 4 |