Boston, MA vs Roanoke, VA
Moving from Boston to Roanoke? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($741,868 → $301,139 median home) and taxes.
Boston vs Roanoke 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 $82,618 in Roanoke, VA (−$17,382).
Livability — Boston, MA: 48 · Roanoke, VA: 73 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 1,146 sqft in Boston vs 3,320 sqft in Roanoke ($436 vs $151 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Boston, MA | Roanoke, VA | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $38,532 | $16,836 | −$21,696 |
| Groceries | $5,040 | $4,853 | −$186 |
| Transportation | $3,210 | $3,080 | −$130 |
| Utilities | $3,180 | $1,872 | −$1,308 |
| Insurance | $1,800 | $1,500 | −$300 |
| Taxes | $17,694 | $9,549 | −$8,145 |
| Total | $69,455 | $37,690 | −$31,765 |
Side by side
| Metric | Boston, MA | Roanoke, VA |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 110.4 | 91.2 |
| Unemployment rate | 5.02% | 4.05% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 2.9% | 0.5% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 43 | 40 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $6.28 | $5.19 |
| Median home price | $741,868 | $301,139 |
| Home price ÷ income | 6.9× | 4.6× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 1.6% | 3.8% |
| Price per square foot | $436 | $151 |
| Median rent | $3,211 | $1,403 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 11.5% | 12.5% |
| Combined sales tax | 6.25% | 5.73% |
| Capital gains tax | 9.00% | 5.75% |
| Property tax rate | 1.14% | 0.81% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $8,200 | $6,800 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $21,000 | $15,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | 2.25% | 3.97% |
| Avg commute (min) | 31 | 24 |
| Home insurance / yr | $1,800 | $1,500 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,500 | $1,400 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $800 | $700 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 29.4 | 17.4 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.30 | 3.20 |
| Violent crime /100k | 330 | 200 |
| Avg summer high °F | 82 | 87 |
| Avg winter low °F | 22 | 28 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 4 | 3 |