Merced, CA vs Providence, RI
Moving from Merced to Providence? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($419,171 → $524,867 median home) and taxes.
Merced 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 Merced, CA, you'd need about $101,900 in Providence, RI (+$1,900).
Livability — Merced, CA: 57 · Providence, RI: 58 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 1,790 sqft in Merced vs 1,524 sqft in Providence ($279 vs $328 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Merced, CA | Providence, RI | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $23,700 | $25,956 | +$2,256 |
| Groceries | $5,247 | $4,922 | −$325 |
| Transportation | $5,125 | $3,875 | −$1,250 |
| Utilities | $3,804 | $3,060 | −$744 |
| Insurance | $1,500 | $1,700 | +$200 |
| Taxes | $18,715 | $13,121 | −$5,594 |
| Total | $58,091 | $52,634 | −$5,457 |
Side by side
| Metric | Merced, CA | Providence, RI |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 99.6 | 101.5 |
| Unemployment rate | 10.70% | 5.82% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 5.6% | 3.6% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 42 | 42 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.67 | $5.78 |
| Median home price | $419,171 | $524,867 |
| Home price ÷ income | 6.5× | 6.5× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | -1.4% | 3.1% |
| Price per square foot | $279 | $328 |
| Median rent | $1,975 | $2,163 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 13.5% | 11.4% |
| Combined sales tax | 8.82% | 7.00% |
| Capital gains tax | 13.30% | 5.99% |
| Property tax rate | 0.68% | 1.31% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $7,200 | $7,600 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $19,000 | $13,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | 0.65% | None |
| Avg commute (min) | 31 | 26 |
| Home insurance / yr | $1,500 | $1,700 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $2,400 | $2,100 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $750 | $900 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $950 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 35.3 | 28.3 |
| Gas $/gal | 4.85 | 3.35 |
| Natural gas / mo | $72 | $92 |
| Water & sewer / mo | $138 | $80 |
| Home internet / mo | $83 | $67 |
| Violent crime /100k | 500 | 240 |
| Avg summer high °F | 84 | 82 |
| Avg winter low °F | 45 | 21 |
| Annual precipitation (in) | 13.5 | 47.5 |
| Annual snowfall (in) | 0.0 | 36.6 |
| Sunshine (% possible) | 75% | 56% |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 5 | 4 |