Lafayette, LA vs Portland, OR
Moving from Lafayette to Portland? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($202,312 → $552,022 median home) and taxes.
Lafayette vs Portland 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 Lafayette, LA, you'd need about $121,885 in Portland, OR (+$21,885).
Livability — Lafayette, LA: 72 · Portland, OR: 55 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 4,941 sqft in Lafayette vs 1,540 sqft in Portland ($101 vs $325 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Lafayette, LA | Portland, OR | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $16,452 | $21,564 | +$5,112 |
| Groceries | $4,650 | $5,240 | +$590 |
| Transportation | $4,475 | $3,680 | −$795 |
| Utilities | $1,560 | $1,704 | +$144 |
| Insurance | $3,500 | $900 | −$2,600 |
| Taxes | $8,509 | $14,382 | +$5,873 |
| Total | $39,146 | $47,470 | +$8,324 |
Side by side
| Metric | Lafayette, LA | Portland, OR |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 87.6 | 106.7 |
| Unemployment rate | 5.97% | 5.06% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | -1.6% | 5.2% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 51 | 38 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $4.98 | $6.07 |
| Median home price | $202,312 | $552,022 |
| Home price ÷ income | 3.5× | 6.1× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 2.1% | -1.1% |
| Price per square foot | $101 | $325 |
| Median rent | $1,371 | $1,797 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 9.1% | 10.8% |
| Combined sales tax | 9.56% | 0.00% |
| Capital gains tax | 4.25% | 9.90% |
| Property tax rate | 0.49% | 0.92% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,600 | $6,600 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $8,000 | $15,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | 0.10% | None |
| Avg commute (min) | 26 | 26 |
| Home insurance / yr | $3,500 | $900 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $2,900 | $1,500 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $1,000 | $650 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $600 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 14.4 | 15.8 |
| Gas $/gal | 2.95 | 4.10 |
| Violent crime /100k | 630 | 340 |
| Avg summer high °F | 92 | 82 |
| Avg winter low °F | 43 | 34 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 2 | 4 |