Manchester, NH vs Boston, MA
Moving from Manchester to Boston? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($526,340 → $741,868 median home) and taxes.
Manchester 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 Manchester, NH, you'd need about $104,517 in Boston, MA (+$4,517).
Livability — Manchester, NH: 62 · Boston, MA: 48 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 1,710 sqft in Manchester vs 1,146 sqft in Boston ($292 vs $436 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Manchester, NH | Boston, MA | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $25,632 | $38,532 | +$12,900 |
| Groceries | $4,935 | $5,040 | +$104 |
| Transportation | $2,955 | $3,210 | +$255 |
| Utilities | $2,940 | $3,180 | +$240 |
| Insurance | $1,000 | $1,800 | +$800 |
| Taxes | $6,681 | $17,694 | +$11,013 |
| Total | $44,143 | $69,455 | +$25,312 |
Side by side
| Metric | Manchester, NH | Boston, MA |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 105.6 | 110.4 |
| Unemployment rate | 3.69% | 5.02% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 4.0% | 2.9% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 42 | 42 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $6.01 | $6.28 |
| Median home price | $526,340 | $741,868 |
| Home price ÷ income | 5.5× | 6.9× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 2.2% | 1.6% |
| Price per square foot | $292 | $436 |
| Median rent | $2,136 | $3,211 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 9.6% | 11.5% |
| Combined sales tax | 0.00% | 6.25% |
| Capital gains tax | None | 9.00% |
| Property tax rate | 1.88% | 1.14% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $7,800 | $8,200 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $15,000 | $21,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | 1.80% | 2.25% |
| Avg commute (min) | 27 | 31 |
| Home insurance / yr | $1,000 | $1,800 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,200 | $1,500 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $650 | $800 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 27.2 | 29.4 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.25 | 3.30 |
| Natural gas / mo | $90 | $108 |
| Water & sewer / mo | $85 | $71 |
| Home internet / mo | $66 | $78 |
| Violent crime /100k | 120 | 330 |
| Avg summer high °F | 81 | 82 |
| Avg winter low °F | 10 | 22 |
| Annual precipitation (in) | 43.6 | 43.6 |
| Annual snowfall (in) | 49.2 | 49.2 |
| Sunshine (% possible) | 58% | 58% |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 3 | 4 |