Detroit, MI vs Boulder, CO
Moving from Detroit to Boulder? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($269,080 → $727,954 median home) and taxes.
Detroit vs Boulder 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 $102,472 in Boulder, CO (+$2,472).
Livability — Detroit, MI: 62 · Boulder, CO: 54 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 3,066 sqft in Detroit vs 1,305 sqft in Boulder ($163 vs $383 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Detroit, MI | Boulder, CO | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $18,000 | $27,084 | +$9,084 |
| Groceries | $4,896 | $4,814 | −$82 |
| Transportation | $4,575 | $4,050 | −$525 |
| Utilities | $2,316 | $1,788 | −$528 |
| Insurance | $1,300 | $2,800 | +$1,500 |
| Taxes | $9,547 | $10,679 | +$1,132 |
| Total | $40,634 | $51,214 | +$10,580 |
Side by side
| Metric | Detroit, MI | Boulder, CO |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 98.2 | 100.6 |
| Unemployment rate | 6.60% | 4.41% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 1.7% | 3.8% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 42 | 42 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.59 | $5.72 |
| Median home price | $269,080 | $727,954 |
| Home price ÷ income | 3.7× | 7.3× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 2.8% | -2.6% |
| Price per square foot | $163 | $383 |
| Median rent | $1,500 | $2,257 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 10.0% | 9.7% |
| Combined sales tax | 6.00% | 7.77% |
| Capital gains tax | 4.25% | 4.40% |
| Property tax rate | 1.43% | 0.53% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,500 | $6,800 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $11,000 | $16,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | 0.61% | 1.79% |
| Avg commute (min) | 27 | 23 |
| Home insurance / yr | $1,300 | $2,800 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $2,700 | $2,000 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $600 | $550 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 21.4 | 16.5 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.35 | 3.30 |
| Natural gas / mo | $78 | $65 |
| Water & sewer / mo | $74 | $120 |
| Home internet / mo | $78 | $87 |
| Violent crime /100k | 460 | 490 |
| Avg summer high °F | 83 | 88 |
| Avg winter low °F | 16 | 18 |
| Annual precipitation (in) | 34.3 | 15.4 |
| Annual snowfall (in) | 45.0 | 49.0 |
| Sunshine (% possible) | 53% | 69% |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 3 | 3 |