Portland, OR vs Fort Wayne, IN
Moving from Portland to Fort Wayne? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($552,022 → $259,816 median home) and taxes.
Portland vs Fort Wayne 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 $84,101 in Fort Wayne, IN (−$15,899).
Livability — Portland, OR: 55 · Fort Wayne, IN: 72 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 1,540 sqft in Portland vs 3,658 sqft in Fort Wayne ($325 vs $137 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Portland, OR | Fort Wayne, IN | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $21,564 | $15,168 | −$6,396 |
| Groceries | $5,240 | $4,740 | −$500 |
| Transportation | $3,680 | $3,250 | −$430 |
| Utilities | $1,704 | $1,932 | +$228 |
| Insurance | $900 | $1,600 | +$700 |
| Taxes | $14,382 | $6,922 | −$7,460 |
| Total | $47,470 | $33,612 | −$13,858 |
Side by side
| Metric | Portland, OR | Fort Wayne, IN |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 106.7 | 89.7 |
| Unemployment rate | 5.06% | 4.76% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 5.2% | -2.2% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 38 | 47 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $6.07 | $5.11 |
| Median home price | $552,022 | $259,816 |
| Home price ÷ income | 6.1× | 3.9× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | -1.1% | 2.9% |
| Price per square foot | $325 | $137 |
| Median rent | $1,797 | $1,264 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 10.8% | 9.3% |
| Combined sales tax | 0.00% | 7.00% |
| Capital gains tax | 9.90% | 3.05% |
| Property tax rate | 0.92% | 0.81% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,600 | $6,600 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $15,000 | $12,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | None | 1.20% |
| Avg commute (min) | 26 | 22 |
| Home insurance / yr | $900 | $1,600 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,500 | $1,400 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $650 | $600 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $600 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 15.8 | 17.9 |
| Gas $/gal | 4.10 | 3.30 |
| Violent crime /100k | 340 | 360 |
| Avg summer high °F | 82 | 86 |
| Avg winter low °F | 34 | 20 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 4 | 2 |