Boston, MA vs Syracuse, NY
Moving from Boston to Syracuse? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($741,868 → $264,903 median home) and taxes.
Boston vs Syracuse 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 $86,706 in Syracuse, NY (−$13,294).
Livability — Boston, MA: 48 · Syracuse, NY: 61 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 1,146 sqft in Boston vs 3,019 sqft in Syracuse ($436 vs $166 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Boston, MA | Syracuse, NY | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $38,532 | $19,596 | −$18,936 |
| Groceries | $5,040 | $4,868 | −$172 |
| Transportation | $3,210 | $3,895 | +$685 |
| Utilities | $3,180 | $3,180 | +$0 |
| Insurance | $1,800 | $1,600 | −$200 |
| Taxes | $17,694 | $18,225 | +$532 |
| Total | $69,455 | $51,364 | −$18,091 |
Side by side
| Metric | Boston, MA | Syracuse, NY |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 110.4 | 95.7 |
| Unemployment rate | 5.02% | 5.79% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 2.9% | -0.1% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 43 | 36 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $6.28 | $5.45 |
| Median home price | $741,868 | $264,903 |
| Home price ÷ income | 6.9× | 3.8× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 1.6% | 6.6% |
| Price per square foot | $436 | $166 |
| Median rent | $3,211 | $1,633 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 11.5% | 15.9% |
| Combined sales tax | 6.25% | 8.52% |
| Capital gains tax | 9.00% | 10.90% |
| Property tax rate | 1.14% | 2.64% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $8,200 | $7,800 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $21,000 | $17,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | 2.25% | None |
| Avg commute (min) | 31 | 21 |
| Home insurance / yr | $1,800 | $1,600 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,500 | $2,100 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $800 | $800 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 29.4 | 29.4 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.30 | 3.45 |
| Violent crime /100k | 330 | 350 |
| Avg summer high °F | 82 | 83 |
| Avg winter low °F | 22 | 16 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 4 | 5 |