Providence, RI vs Portland, ME
Moving from Providence to Portland? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($524,867 → $542,063 median home) and taxes.
Providence vs Portland 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 $102,801 in Portland, ME (+$2,801).
Livability — Providence, RI: 58 · Portland, ME: 58 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 1,524 sqft in Providence vs 1,568 sqft in Portland ($328 vs $319 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Providence, RI | Portland, ME | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $25,956 | $27,840 | +$1,884 |
| Groceries | $4,922 | $4,917 | −$5 |
| Transportation | $3,875 | $2,775 | −$1,100 |
| Utilities | $3,060 | $3,072 | +$12 |
| Insurance | $1,700 | $1,000 | −$700 |
| Taxes | $13,121 | $12,997 | −$124 |
| Total | $52,634 | $52,601 | −$33 |
Side by side
| Metric | Providence, RI | Portland, ME |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 101.5 | 104.4 |
| Unemployment rate | 5.82% | 3.37% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 3.6% | 5.2% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 42 | 42 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.78 | $5.94 |
| Median home price | $524,867 | $542,063 |
| Home price ÷ income | 6.5× | 6.4× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 3.1% | 1.0% |
| Price per square foot | $328 | $319 |
| Median rent | $2,163 | $2,320 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 11.4% | 12.4% |
| Combined sales tax | 7.00% | 5.50% |
| Capital gains tax | 5.99% | 7.15% |
| Property tax rate | 1.31% | 1.14% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $7,600 | $8,000 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $13,000 | $12,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | None | 2.40% |
| Avg commute (min) | 26 | 25 |
| Home insurance / yr | $1,700 | $1,000 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $2,100 | $1,000 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $900 | $700 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 28.3 | 28.4 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.35 | 3.35 |
| Natural gas / mo | $92 | $78 |
| Water & sewer / mo | $80 | $86 |
| Home internet / mo | $67 | $71 |
| Violent crime /100k | 240 | 110 |
| Avg summer high °F | 82 | 80 |
| Avg winter low °F | 21 | 10 |
| Annual precipitation (in) | 47.5 | 43.6 |
| Annual snowfall (in) | 36.6 | 49.2 |
| Sunshine (% possible) | 56% | 48% |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 4 | 3 |