Providence, RI vs Olympia, WA
Moving from Providence to Olympia? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($524,867 → $533,918 median home) and taxes.
Providence vs Olympia 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 Providence, RI, you'd need about $104,777 in Olympia, WA (+$4,777).
Livability — Providence, RI: 58 · Olympia, WA: 52 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 1,524 sqft in Providence vs 1,686 sqft in Olympia ($328 vs $297 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Providence, RI | Olympia, WA | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $25,956 | $24,492 | −$1,464 |
| Groceries | $4,922 | $5,246 | +$324 |
| Transportation | $3,875 | $4,075 | +$200 |
| Utilities | $3,060 | $1,548 | −$1,512 |
| Insurance | $1,700 | $1,500 | −$200 |
| Taxes | $13,121 | $7,085 | −$6,036 |
| Total | $52,634 | $43,946 | −$8,688 |
Side by side
| Metric | Providence, RI | Olympia, WA |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 101.5 | 106.4 |
| Unemployment rate | 5.82% | 5.49% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 3.6% | 9.0% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 42 | 26 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.78 | $6.05 |
| Median home price | $524,867 | $533,918 |
| Home price ÷ income | 6.5× | 6.0× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 3.1% | 0.3% |
| Price per square foot | $328 | $297 |
| Median rent | $2,163 | $2,041 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 11.4% | 10.7% |
| Combined sales tax | 7.00% | 9.38% |
| Capital gains tax | 5.99% | 7.00% |
| Property tax rate | 1.31% | 0.92% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $7,600 | $6,600 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $13,000 | $16,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | None | None |
| Avg commute (min) | 26 | 27 |
| Home insurance / yr | $1,700 | $1,500 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $2,100 | $1,600 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $900 | $700 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $700 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 28.3 | 14.4 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.35 | 4.55 |
| Violent crime /100k | 240 | 375 |
| Avg summer high °F | 82 | 76 |
| Avg winter low °F | 21 | 37 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 4 | 5 |