Boston, MA vs Denver, CO
Moving from Boston to Denver? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($741,868 → $573,221 median home) and taxes.
Boston vs Denver 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 Boston, MA, you'd need about $95,810 in Denver, CO (−$4,190).
Livability — Boston, MA: 48 · Denver, CO: 52 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 1,146 sqft in Boston vs 1,657 sqft in Denver ($436 vs $302 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Boston, MA | Denver, CO | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $38,532 | $22,920 | −$15,612 |
| Groceries | $5,040 | $5,079 | +$39 |
| Transportation | $3,210 | $4,050 | +$840 |
| Utilities | $3,180 | $1,788 | −$1,392 |
| Insurance | $1,800 | $2,800 | +$1,000 |
| Taxes | $17,694 | $9,828 | −$7,866 |
| Total | $69,455 | $46,464 | −$22,991 |
Side by side
| Metric | Boston, MA | Denver, CO |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 110.4 | 105.8 |
| Unemployment rate | 5.02% | 4.26% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 2.9% | 5.7% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 43 | 64 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $6.28 | $6.02 |
| Median home price | $741,868 | $573,221 |
| Home price ÷ income | 6.9× | 5.9× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 1.6% | -2.9% |
| Price per square foot | $436 | $302 |
| Median rent | $3,211 | $1,910 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 11.5% | 9.7% |
| Combined sales tax | 6.25% | 7.77% |
| Capital gains tax | 9.00% | 4.40% |
| Property tax rate | 1.14% | 0.52% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $8,200 | $6,800 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $21,000 | $16,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | 2.25% | 1.79% |
| Avg commute (min) | 31 | 28 |
| Home insurance / yr | $1,800 | $2,800 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,500 | $2,000 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $800 | $550 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 29.4 | 16.5 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.30 | 3.30 |
| Violent crime /100k | 330 | 490 |
| Avg summer high °F | 82 | 88 |
| Avg winter low °F | 22 | 18 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 4 | 3 |