Knoxville, TN vs Boston, MA
Moving from Knoxville to Boston? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($367,158 → $741,868 median home) and taxes.
Knoxville 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 Knoxville, TN, you'd need about $119,688 in Boston, MA (+$19,688).
Livability — Knoxville, TN: 68 · Boston, MA: 48 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 2,723 sqft in Knoxville vs 1,146 sqft in Boston ($184 vs $436 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Knoxville, TN | Boston, MA | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $21,144 | $38,532 | +$17,388 |
| Groceries | $4,715 | $5,040 | +$325 |
| Transportation | $3,130 | $3,210 | +$80 |
| Utilities | $1,608 | $3,180 | +$1,572 |
| Insurance | $2,200 | $1,800 | −$400 |
| Taxes | $4,576 | $17,694 | +$13,118 |
| Total | $37,372 | $69,455 | +$32,083 |
Side by side
| Metric | Knoxville, TN | Boston, MA |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 92.2 | 110.4 |
| Unemployment rate | 4.24% | 5.02% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 2.5% | 2.9% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 52 | 43 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.25 | $6.28 |
| Median home price | $367,158 | $741,868 |
| Home price ÷ income | 5.5× | 6.9× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 1.8% | 1.6% |
| Price per square foot | $184 | $436 |
| Median rent | $1,762 | $3,211 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 7.6% | 11.5% |
| Combined sales tax | 9.55% | 6.25% |
| Capital gains tax | None | 9.00% |
| Property tax rate | 0.53% | 1.14% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,300 | $8,200 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $9,000 | $21,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | None | 2.25% |
| Avg commute (min) | 24 | 31 |
| Home insurance / yr | $2,200 | $1,800 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,600 | $1,500 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $700 | $800 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $350 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 14.9 | 29.4 |
| Gas $/gal | 2.95 | 3.30 |
| Violent crime /100k | 600 | 330 |
| Avg summer high °F | 89 | 82 |
| Avg winter low °F | 30 | 22 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 2 | 4 |