Portland, OR vs Phoenix, AZ
Moving from Portland to Phoenix? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($552,022 → $448,352 median home) and taxes.
Portland vs Phoenix 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 $98,090 in Phoenix, AZ (−$1,910).
Livability — Portland, OR: 55 · Phoenix, AZ: 62 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 1,540 sqft in Portland vs 2,063 sqft in Phoenix ($325 vs $242 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Portland, OR | Phoenix, AZ | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $21,564 | $20,904 | −$660 |
| Groceries | $5,240 | $4,919 | −$321 |
| Transportation | $3,680 | $3,960 | +$280 |
| Utilities | $1,704 | $1,668 | −$36 |
| Insurance | $900 | $1,800 | +$900 |
| Taxes | $14,382 | $7,280 | −$7,102 |
| Total | $47,470 | $40,531 | −$6,939 |
Side by side
| Metric | Portland, OR | Phoenix, AZ |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 106.7 | 104.7 |
| Unemployment rate | 5.06% | 4.88% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 5.2% | 6.7% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 42 | 42 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $6.07 | $5.96 |
| Median home price | $552,022 | $448,352 |
| Home price ÷ income | 6.1× | 5.6× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | -1.1% | -1.7% |
| Price per square foot | $325 | $242 |
| Median rent | $1,797 | $1,742 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 10.8% | 9.5% |
| Combined sales tax | 0.00% | 8.38% |
| Capital gains tax | 9.90% | 2.50% |
| Property tax rate | 0.92% | 0.51% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,600 | $6,300 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $15,000 | $12,500 |
| Vehicle property tax | None | 1.68% |
| Avg commute (min) | 26 | 27 |
| Home insurance / yr | $900 | $1,800 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,500 | $1,900 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $650 | $550 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $600 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 15.8 | 15.5 |
| Gas $/gal | 4.10 | 3.60 |
| Natural gas / mo | $58 | $54 |
| Water & sewer / mo | $224 | $106 |
| Home internet / mo | $82 | $77 |
| Violent crime /100k | 340 | 430 |
| Avg summer high °F | 82 | 104 |
| Avg winter low °F | 34 | 41 |
| Annual precipitation (in) | 43.7 | 7.2 |
| Annual snowfall (in) | 3.4 | 0.0 |
| Sunshine (% possible) | 48% | 85% |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 4 | 2 |