Boston, MA vs Urban Honolulu, HI
Moving from Boston to Urban Honolulu? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($741,868 → $851,163 median home) and taxes.
Boston vs Urban Honolulu 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 $100,934 in Urban Honolulu, HI (+$934).
Livability — Boston, MA: 48 · Urban Honolulu, HI: 48 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 1,146 sqft in Boston vs 881 sqft in Urban Honolulu ($436 vs $567 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Boston, MA | Urban Honolulu, HI | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $38,532 | $35,760 | −$2,772 |
| Groceries | $5,040 | $5,517 | +$478 |
| Transportation | $3,210 | $3,900 | +$690 |
| Utilities | $3,180 | $5,040 | +$1,860 |
| Insurance | $1,800 | $1,100 | −$700 |
| Taxes | $17,694 | $14,943 | −$2,750 |
| Total | $69,455 | $66,260 | −$3,195 |
Side by side
| Metric | Boston, MA | Urban Honolulu, HI |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 110.4 | 111.4 |
| Unemployment rate | 5.02% | 4.79% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 2.9% | 2.0% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 43 | 31 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $6.28 | $6.34 |
| Median home price | $741,868 | $851,163 |
| Home price ÷ income | 6.9× | 8.5× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 1.6% | 0.6% |
| Price per square foot | $436 | $567 |
| Median rent | $3,211 | $2,980 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 11.5% | 14.1% |
| Combined sales tax | 6.25% | 4.50% |
| Capital gains tax | 9.00% | 11.00% |
| Property tax rate | 1.14% | 0.28% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $8,200 | $5,800 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $21,000 | $15,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | 2.25% | None |
| Avg commute (min) | 31 | 27 |
| Home insurance / yr | $1,800 | $1,100 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,500 | $1,400 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $800 | $800 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $550 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 29.4 | 46.6 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.30 | 4.70 |
| Violent crime /100k | 330 | 260 |
| Avg summer high °F | 82 | 85 |
| Avg winter low °F | 22 | 66 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 4 | 5 |