Portland, OR vs Fayetteville, AR
Moving from Portland to Fayetteville? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($552,022 → $368,497 median home) and taxes.
Portland vs Fayetteville 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 Portland, OR, you'd need about $85,696 in Fayetteville, AR (−$14,304).
Livability — Portland, OR: 55 · Fayetteville, AR: 66 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 1,540 sqft in Portland vs 2,714 sqft in Fayetteville ($325 vs $184 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Portland, OR | Fayetteville, AR | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $21,564 | $19,128 | −$2,436 |
| Groceries | $5,240 | $4,655 | −$585 |
| Transportation | $3,680 | $3,405 | −$275 |
| Utilities | $1,704 | $1,524 | −$180 |
| Insurance | $900 | $2,800 | +$1,900 |
| Taxes | $14,382 | $8,682 | −$5,700 |
| Total | $47,470 | $40,193 | −$7,277 |
Side by side
| Metric | Portland, OR | Fayetteville, AR |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 106.7 | 91.5 |
| Unemployment rate | 5.06% | 3.55% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 5.2% | 7.1% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 38 | 41 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $6.07 | $5.20 |
| Median home price | $552,022 | $368,497 |
| Home price ÷ income | 6.1× | 5.0× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | -1.1% | 3.1% |
| Price per square foot | $325 | $184 |
| Median rent | $1,797 | $1,594 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 10.8% | 10.2% |
| Combined sales tax | 0.00% | 9.47% |
| Capital gains tax | 9.90% | 3.90% |
| Property tax rate | 0.92% | 0.60% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,600 | $6,000 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $15,000 | $7,500 |
| Vehicle property tax | None | 1.02% |
| Avg commute (min) | 26 | 21 |
| Home insurance / yr | $900 | $2,800 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,500 | $1,900 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $650 | $750 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $600 | $350 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 15.8 | 14.2 |
| Gas $/gal | 4.10 | 2.95 |
| Violent crime /100k | 340 | 640 |
| Avg summer high °F | 82 | 93 |
| Avg winter low °F | 34 | 30 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 4 | 2 |