Boston, MA vs Myrtle Beach, SC
Moving from Boston to Myrtle Beach? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($741,868 → $340,239 median home) and taxes.
Boston vs Myrtle Beach 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 $84,946 in Myrtle Beach, SC (−$15,054).
Livability — Boston, MA: 48 · Myrtle Beach, SC: 67 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 1,146 sqft in Boston vs 2,939 sqft in Myrtle Beach ($436 vs $170 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Boston, MA | Myrtle Beach, SC | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $38,532 | $20,712 | −$17,820 |
| Groceries | $5,040 | $4,797 | −$242 |
| Transportation | $3,210 | $3,465 | +$255 |
| Utilities | $3,180 | $1,848 | −$1,332 |
| Insurance | $1,800 | $2,000 | +$200 |
| Taxes | $17,694 | $10,008 | −$7,685 |
| Total | $69,455 | $42,830 | −$26,625 |
Side by side
| Metric | Boston, MA | Myrtle Beach, SC |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 110.4 | 93.8 |
| Unemployment rate | 5.02% | 5.41% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 2.9% | 14.7% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 43 | 40 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $6.28 | $5.34 |
| Median home price | $741,868 | $340,239 |
| Home price ÷ income | 6.9× | 5.4× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 1.6% | -0.6% |
| Price per square foot | $436 | $170 |
| Median rent | $3,211 | $1,726 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 11.5% | 8.9% |
| Combined sales tax | 6.25% | 7.44% |
| Capital gains tax | 9.00% | 6.40% |
| Property tax rate | 1.14% | 0.41% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $8,200 | $6,500 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $21,000 | $8,500 |
| Vehicle property tax | 2.25% | 2.33% |
| Avg commute (min) | 31 | 23 |
| Home insurance / yr | $1,800 | $2,000 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,500 | $1,900 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $800 | $900 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $350 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 29.4 | 17.1 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.30 | 3.05 |
| Violent crime /100k | 330 | 530 |
| Avg summer high °F | 82 | 91 |
| Avg winter low °F | 22 | 36 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 4 | 2 |