Madison, WI vs Providence, RI
Moving from Madison to Providence? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($452,769 → $524,867 median home) and taxes.
Madison vs Providence 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 Madison, WI, you'd need about $105,813 in Providence, RI (+$5,813).
Livability — Madison, WI: 62 · Providence, RI: 58 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 1,878 sqft in Madison vs 1,524 sqft in Providence ($266 vs $328 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Madison, WI | Providence, RI | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $20,196 | $25,956 | +$5,760 |
| Groceries | $4,691 | $4,922 | +$230 |
| Transportation | $3,085 | $3,875 | +$790 |
| Utilities | $2,076 | $3,060 | +$984 |
| Insurance | $1,300 | $1,700 | +$400 |
| Taxes | $15,162 | $13,121 | −$2,040 |
| Total | $46,510 | $52,634 | +$6,124 |
Side by side
| Metric | Madison, WI | Providence, RI |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 95.9 | 101.5 |
| Unemployment rate | 2.42% | 5.82% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 6.1% | 3.6% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 42 | 42 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.46 | $5.78 |
| Median home price | $452,769 | $524,867 |
| Home price ÷ income | 5.5× | 6.5× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 2.7% | 3.1% |
| Price per square foot | $266 | $328 |
| Median rent | $1,683 | $2,163 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 10.9% | 11.4% |
| Combined sales tax | 5.43% | 7.00% |
| Capital gains tax | 7.65% | 5.99% |
| Property tax rate | 1.75% | 1.31% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,800 | $7,600 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $13,000 | $13,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | None | None |
| Avg commute (min) | 22 | 26 |
| Home insurance / yr | $1,300 | $1,700 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,400 | $2,100 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $600 | $900 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 19.2 | 28.3 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.20 | 3.35 |
| Violent crime /100k | 320 | 240 |
| Avg summer high °F | 82 | 82 |
| Avg winter low °F | 8 | 21 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 3 | 4 |