Boise City, ID vs Providence, RI
Moving from Boise City to Providence? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($496,288 → $524,867 median home) and taxes.
Boise City vs Providence 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 $107,711 in Providence, RI (+$7,711).
Livability — Boise City, ID: 68 · Providence, RI: 58 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 1,864 sqft in Boise City vs 1,524 sqft in Providence ($268 vs $328 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Boise City, ID | Providence, RI | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $22,044 | $25,956 | +$3,912 |
| Groceries | $4,790 | $4,922 | +$132 |
| Transportation | $3,090 | $3,875 | +$785 |
| Utilities | $1,368 | $3,060 | +$1,692 |
| Insurance | $1,300 | $1,700 | +$400 |
| Taxes | $10,170 | $13,121 | +$2,952 |
| Total | $42,761 | $52,634 | +$9,873 |
Side by side
| Metric | Boise City, ID | Providence, RI |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 94.2 | 101.5 |
| Unemployment rate | 3.29% | 5.82% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 13.9% | 3.6% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 42 | 42 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.36 | $5.78 |
| Median home price | $496,288 | $524,867 |
| Home price ÷ income | 6.4× | 6.5× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 0.3% | 3.1% |
| Price per square foot | $268 | $328 |
| Median rent | $1,837 | $2,163 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 10.7% | 11.4% |
| Combined sales tax | 6.03% | 7.00% |
| Capital gains tax | 5.80% | 5.99% |
| Property tax rate | 0.59% | 1.31% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,200 | $7,600 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $8,500 | $13,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | None | None |
| Avg commute (min) | 23 | 26 |
| Home insurance / yr | $1,300 | $1,700 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,100 | $2,100 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $500 | $900 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $300 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 12.7 | 28.3 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.70 | 3.35 |
| Natural gas / mo | $52 | $92 |
| Water & sewer / mo | $205 | $80 |
| Home internet / mo | $78 | $67 |
| Violent crime /100k | 240 | 240 |
| Avg summer high °F | 90 | 82 |
| Avg winter low °F | 24 | 21 |
| Annual precipitation (in) | 11.7 | 47.5 |
| Annual snowfall (in) | 19.0 | 36.6 |
| Sunshine (% possible) | 61% | 56% |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 2 | 4 |