Detroit, MI vs Salisbury, MD
Moving from Detroit to Salisbury? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($269,080 → $429,483 median home) and taxes.
Detroit vs Salisbury 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 $94,354 in Salisbury, MD (−$5,646).
Livability — Detroit, MI: 62 · Salisbury, MD: 65 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 3,066 sqft in Detroit vs 2,212 sqft in Salisbury ($163 vs $226 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Detroit, MI | Salisbury, MD | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $18,000 | $23,616 | +$5,616 |
| Groceries | $4,896 | $4,863 | −$33 |
| Transportation | $4,575 | $3,685 | −$890 |
| Utilities | $2,316 | $2,388 | +$72 |
| Insurance | $1,300 | $1,400 | +$100 |
| Taxes | $9,547 | $9,253 | −$294 |
| Total | $40,634 | $45,205 | +$4,571 |
Side by side
| Metric | Detroit, MI | Salisbury, MD |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 98.2 | 92.6 |
| Unemployment rate | 6.60% | 5.84% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 1.7% | 6.9% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 55 | 40 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.59 | $5.27 |
| Median home price | $269,080 | $429,483 |
| Home price ÷ income | 3.7× | 5.9× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 2.8% | -0.5% |
| Price per square foot | $163 | $226 |
| Median rent | $1,500 | $1,968 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 10.0% | 11.3% |
| Combined sales tax | 6.00% | 6.00% |
| Capital gains tax | 4.25% | 5.75% |
| Property tax rate | 1.43% | 0.49% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,500 | $7,200 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $11,000 | $16,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | 0.61% | None |
| Avg commute (min) | 27 | 25 |
| Home insurance / yr | $1,300 | $1,400 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $2,700 | $1,900 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $600 | $750 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 21.4 | 22.1 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.35 | 3.30 |
| Violent crime /100k | 460 | 450 |
| Avg summer high °F | 83 | 88 |
| Avg winter low °F | 16 | 27 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 3 | 4 |