Boston, MA vs Olympia, WA
Moving from Boston to Olympia? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($741,868 → $533,918 median home) and taxes.
Boston vs Olympia 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 $96,347 in Olympia, WA (−$3,653).
Livability — Boston, MA: 48 · Olympia, WA: 52 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 1,146 sqft in Boston vs 1,686 sqft in Olympia ($436 vs $297 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Boston, MA | Olympia, WA | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $38,532 | $24,492 | −$14,040 |
| Groceries | $5,040 | $5,246 | +$206 |
| Transportation | $3,210 | $4,075 | +$865 |
| Utilities | $3,180 | $1,548 | −$1,632 |
| Insurance | $1,800 | $1,500 | −$300 |
| Taxes | $17,694 | $7,085 | −$10,608 |
| Total | $69,455 | $43,946 | −$25,510 |
Side by side
| Metric | Boston, MA | Olympia, WA |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 110.4 | 106.4 |
| Unemployment rate | 5.02% | 5.49% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 2.9% | 9.0% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 43 | 26 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $6.28 | $6.05 |
| Median home price | $741,868 | $533,918 |
| Home price ÷ income | 6.9× | 6.0× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 1.6% | 0.3% |
| Price per square foot | $436 | $297 |
| Median rent | $3,211 | $2,041 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 11.5% | 10.7% |
| Combined sales tax | 6.25% | 9.38% |
| Capital gains tax | 9.00% | 7.00% |
| Property tax rate | 1.14% | 0.92% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $8,200 | $6,600 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $21,000 | $16,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | 2.25% | None |
| Avg commute (min) | 31 | 27 |
| Home insurance / yr | $1,800 | $1,500 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,500 | $1,600 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $800 | $700 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $700 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 29.4 | 14.4 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.30 | 4.55 |
| Violent crime /100k | 330 | 375 |
| Avg summer high °F | 82 | 76 |
| Avg winter low °F | 22 | 37 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 4 | 5 |