New Haven, CT vs Los Angeles, CA
Moving from New Haven to Los Angeles? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($408,096 → $968,608 median home) and taxes.
New Haven vs Los Angeles 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 New Haven, CT, you'd need about $108,913 in Los Angeles, CA (+$8,913).
Livability — New Haven, CT: 58 · Los Angeles, CA: 42 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 2,328 sqft in New Haven vs 774 sqft in Los Angeles ($215 vs $646 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | New Haven, CT | Los Angeles, CA | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $26,232 | $34,908 | +$8,676 |
| Groceries | $4,930 | $5,354 | +$424 |
| Transportation | $3,720 | $5,125 | +$1,405 |
| Utilities | $3,480 | $3,804 | +$324 |
| Insurance | $1,600 | $1,500 | −$100 |
| Taxes | $15,543 | $21,708 | +$6,166 |
| Total | $55,505 | $72,399 | +$16,895 |
Side by side
| Metric | New Haven, CT | Los Angeles, CA |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 105.4 | 114.7 |
| Unemployment rate | 6.36% | 6.59% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 0.5% | -1.1% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 41 | 80 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.99 | $6.53 |
| Median home price | $408,096 | $968,608 |
| Home price ÷ income | 5.0× | 10.9× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 4.8% | 0.3% |
| Price per square foot | $215 | $646 |
| Median rent | $2,186 | $2,909 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 15.4% | 13.5% |
| Combined sales tax | 6.35% | 8.82% |
| Capital gains tax | 6.99% | 13.30% |
| Property tax rate | 2.17% | 0.69% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $8,200 | $7,200 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $16,000 | $19,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | 2.07% | 0.65% |
| Avg commute (min) | 25 | 30 |
| Home insurance / yr | $1,600 | $1,500 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,900 | $2,400 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $800 | $750 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $950 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 32.2 | 35.3 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.40 | 4.85 |
| Violent crime /100k | 150 | 500 |
| Avg summer high °F | 85 | 84 |
| Avg winter low °F | 18 | 45 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 4 | 5 |