Boston, MA vs Jackson, MS
Moving from Boston to Jackson? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($741,868 → $215,136 median home) and taxes.
Boston vs Jackson 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 $81,379 in Jackson, MS (−$18,621).
Livability — Boston, MA: 48 · Jackson, MS: 76 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 1,146 sqft in Boston vs 4,766 sqft in Jackson ($436 vs $105 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Boston, MA | Jackson, MS | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $38,532 | $17,400 | −$21,132 |
| Groceries | $5,040 | $4,722 | −$318 |
| Transportation | $3,210 | $3,410 | +$200 |
| Utilities | $3,180 | $1,812 | −$1,368 |
| Insurance | $1,800 | $3,100 | +$1,300 |
| Taxes | $17,694 | $8,536 | −$9,158 |
| Total | $69,455 | $38,980 | −$30,476 |
Side by side
| Metric | Boston, MA | Jackson, MS |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 110.4 | 89.8 |
| Unemployment rate | 5.02% | 6.03% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 2.9% | 2.2% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 43 | 48 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $6.28 | $5.11 |
| Median home price | $741,868 | $215,136 |
| Home price ÷ income | 6.9× | 3.6× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 1.6% | 2.4% |
| Price per square foot | $436 | $105 |
| Median rent | $3,211 | $1,450 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 11.5% | 9.8% |
| Combined sales tax | 6.25% | 7.07% |
| Capital gains tax | 9.00% | 4.70% |
| Property tax rate | 1.14% | 0.77% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $8,200 | $6,300 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $21,000 | $6,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | 2.25% | 3.42% |
| Avg commute (min) | 31 | 25 |
| Home insurance / yr | $1,800 | $3,100 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,500 | $1,900 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $800 | $900 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 29.4 | 16.8 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.30 | 2.90 |
| Violent crime /100k | 330 | 280 |
| Avg summer high °F | 82 | 92 |
| Avg winter low °F | 22 | 38 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 4 | 2 |