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Portland, ME vs San Francisco, CA

Moving from Portland to San Francisco? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($542,063 → $1,149,215 median home) and taxes.

Portland vs San Francisco at a glance

Bars scaled to the range across all 200 metros; labels show actual values.

Portland, ME San Francisco, CA Cost-of-living index Portland, ME — Cost-of-living index: 104 104 San Francisco, CA — Cost-of-living index: 118 118 Median home price Portland, ME — Median home price: $542k $542k San Francisco, CA — Median home price: $1149k $1149k Price per sqft Portland, ME — Price per sqft: $319 $319 San Francisco, CA — Price per sqft: $766 $766 Median rent Portland, ME — Median rent: $2,320 $2,320 San Francisco, CA — Median rent: $3,258 $3,258 Combined sales tax Portland, ME — Combined sales tax: 5.5% 5.5% San Francisco, CA — Combined sales tax: 8.8% 8.8% Property tax rate Portland, ME — Property tax rate: 1.14% 1.14% San Francisco, CA — Property tax rate: 0.72% 0.72% Violent crime /100k Portland, ME — Violent crime /100k: 110 110 San Francisco, CA — Violent crime /100k: 500 500 Electricity ¢/kWh Portland, ME — Electricity ¢/kWh: 28.4 28.4 San Francisco, CA — Electricity ¢/kWh: 35.3 35.3 Avg commute (min) Portland, ME — Avg commute (min): 25 25 San Francisco, CA — Avg commute (min): 33 33 Avg summer high °F Portland, ME — Avg summer high °F: 80° 80° San Francisco, CA — Avg summer high °F: 84° 84° Avg winter low °F Portland, ME — Avg winter low °F: 10° 10° San Francisco, CA — Avg winter low °F: 45° 45°

To keep the same standard of living as $100,000 in Portland, ME, you'd need about $112,646 in San Francisco, CA (+$12,646).

Livability — Portland, ME: 58 · San Francisco, CA: 35 (0–100).

What your home budget buys

A $500,000 home budget gets you about 1,568 sqft in Portland vs 653 sqft in San Francisco ($319 vs $766 per sqft).

Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)

CategoryPortland, MESan Francisco, CADifference
Housing $27,840 $39,096 +$11,256
Groceries $4,917 $5,761 +$844
Transportation $2,775 $5,125 +$2,350
Utilities $3,072 $3,804 +$732
Insurance $1,000 $1,500 +$500
Taxes $12,997 $24,108 +$11,111
Total $52,601 $79,394 +$26,793

Side by side

MetricPortland, MESan Francisco, CA
Cost-of-living index104.4117.6
Unemployment rate3.37%5.22%
Population growth (5-yr)5.2%1.1%
Air quality (median AQI)3953
Big Mac price (est.)$5.94$6.69
Median home price$542,063$1,149,215
Home price ÷ income6.4×8.9×
1-yr home appreciation1.0%-0.8%
Price per square foot$319$766
Median rent$2,320$3,258
Total tax burden (% income)12.4%13.5%
Combined sales tax5.50%8.82%
Capital gains tax7.15%13.30%
Property tax rate1.14%0.72%
Healthcare (annual)$8,000$7,200
Childcare (annual, infant)$12,000$19,000
Vehicle property tax2.40%0.65%
Avg commute (min)2533
Home insurance / yr$1,000$1,500
Auto insurance / yr$1,000$2,400
Flood insurance / yr$700$750
Earthquake insurance / yr$100$950
Electricity ¢/kWh28.435.3
Gas $/gal3.354.85
Violent crime /100k110500
Avg summer high °F8084
Avg winter low °F1045
Permit difficulty (1–5)35
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