Detroit, MI vs Boston, MA
Moving from Detroit to Boston? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($269,080 → $741,868 median home) and taxes.
Detroit vs Boston 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 Detroit, MI, you'd need about $112,431 in Boston, MA (+$12,431).
Livability — Detroit, MI: 62 · Boston, MA: 48 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 3,066 sqft in Detroit vs 1,146 sqft in Boston ($163 vs $436 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Detroit, MI | Boston, MA | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $18,000 | $38,532 | +$20,532 |
| Groceries | $4,896 | $5,040 | +$143 |
| Transportation | $4,575 | $3,210 | −$1,365 |
| Utilities | $2,316 | $3,180 | +$864 |
| Insurance | $1,300 | $1,800 | +$500 |
| Taxes | $9,547 | $17,694 | +$8,147 |
| Total | $40,634 | $69,455 | +$28,821 |
Side by side
| Metric | Detroit, MI | Boston, MA |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 98.2 | 110.4 |
| Unemployment rate | 6.60% | 5.02% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 1.7% | 2.9% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 42 | 42 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.59 | $6.28 |
| Median home price | $269,080 | $741,868 |
| Home price ÷ income | 3.7× | 6.9× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 2.8% | 1.6% |
| Price per square foot | $163 | $436 |
| Median rent | $1,500 | $3,211 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 10.0% | 11.5% |
| Combined sales tax | 6.00% | 6.25% |
| Capital gains tax | 4.25% | 9.00% |
| Property tax rate | 1.43% | 1.14% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,500 | $8,200 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $11,000 | $21,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | 0.61% | 2.25% |
| Avg commute (min) | 27 | 31 |
| Home insurance / yr | $1,300 | $1,800 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $2,700 | $1,500 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $600 | $800 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 21.4 | 29.4 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.35 | 3.30 |
| Natural gas / mo | $78 | $108 |
| Water & sewer / mo | $74 | $71 |
| Home internet / mo | $78 | $78 |
| Violent crime /100k | 460 | 330 |
| Avg summer high °F | 83 | 82 |
| Avg winter low °F | 16 | 22 |
| Annual precipitation (in) | 34.3 | 43.6 |
| Annual snowfall (in) | 45.0 | 49.2 |
| Sunshine (% possible) | 53% | 58% |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 3 | 4 |