Portland, OR vs Salem, OR
Moving from Portland to Salem? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($552,022 → $454,689 median home) and taxes.
Portland vs Salem 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 $96,013 in Salem, OR (−$3,987).
Livability — Portland, OR: 55 · Salem, OR: 59 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 1,540 sqft in Portland vs 1,869 sqft in Salem ($325 vs $268 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Portland, OR | Salem, OR | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $21,564 | $19,536 | −$2,028 |
| Groceries | $5,240 | $5,239 | −$1 |
| Transportation | $3,680 | $3,680 | +$0 |
| Utilities | $1,704 | $1,704 | +$0 |
| Insurance | $900 | $900 | +$0 |
| Taxes | $14,382 | $13,135 | −$1,247 |
| Total | $47,470 | $44,194 | −$3,276 |
Side by side
| Metric | Portland, OR | Salem, OR |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 106.7 | 102.5 |
| Unemployment rate | 5.06% | 5.41% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 5.2% | 5.7% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 42 | 42 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $6.07 | $5.83 |
| Median home price | $552,022 | $454,689 |
| Home price ÷ income | 6.1× | 6.3× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | -1.1% | 0.4% |
| Price per square foot | $325 | $268 |
| Median rent | $1,797 | $1,628 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 10.8% | 10.8% |
| Combined sales tax | 0.00% | 0.00% |
| Capital gains tax | 9.90% | 9.90% |
| Property tax rate | 0.92% | 0.90% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,600 | $6,600 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $15,000 | $15,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | None | None |
| Avg commute (min) | 26 | 25 |
| Home insurance / yr | $900 | $900 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,500 | $1,500 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $650 | $650 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $600 | $600 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 15.8 | 15.8 |
| Gas $/gal | 4.10 | 4.10 |
| Natural gas / mo | $58 | $58 |
| Water & sewer / mo | $224 | $224 |
| Home internet / mo | $82 | $82 |
| Violent crime /100k | 340 | 340 |
| Avg summer high °F | 82 | 82 |
| Avg winter low °F | 34 | 34 |
| Annual precipitation (in) | 43.7 | 43.7 |
| Annual snowfall (in) | 3.4 | 3.4 |
| Sunshine (% possible) | 48% | 48% |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 4 | 4 |