Providence, RI vs Urban Honolulu, HI
Moving from Providence to Urban Honolulu? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($524,867 → $851,163 median home) and taxes.
Providence vs Urban Honolulu 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 $109,765 in Urban Honolulu, HI (+$9,765).
Livability — Providence, RI: 58 · Urban Honolulu, HI: 48 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 1,524 sqft in Providence vs 881 sqft in Urban Honolulu ($328 vs $567 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Providence, RI | Urban Honolulu, HI | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $25,956 | $35,760 | +$9,804 |
| Groceries | $4,922 | $5,517 | +$596 |
| Transportation | $3,875 | $3,900 | +$25 |
| Utilities | $3,060 | $5,040 | +$1,980 |
| Insurance | $1,700 | $1,100 | −$600 |
| Taxes | $13,121 | $14,943 | +$1,822 |
| Total | $52,634 | $66,260 | +$13,627 |
Side by side
| Metric | Providence, RI | Urban Honolulu, HI |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 101.5 | 111.4 |
| Unemployment rate | 5.82% | 4.79% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 3.6% | 2.0% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 42 | 31 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.78 | $6.34 |
| Median home price | $524,867 | $851,163 |
| Home price ÷ income | 6.5× | 8.5× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 3.1% | 0.6% |
| Price per square foot | $328 | $567 |
| Median rent | $2,163 | $2,980 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 11.4% | 14.1% |
| Combined sales tax | 7.00% | 4.50% |
| Capital gains tax | 5.99% | 11.00% |
| Property tax rate | 1.31% | 0.28% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $7,600 | $5,800 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $13,000 | $15,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | None | None |
| Avg commute (min) | 26 | 27 |
| Home insurance / yr | $1,700 | $1,100 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $2,100 | $1,400 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $900 | $800 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $550 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 28.3 | 46.6 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.35 | 4.70 |
| Violent crime /100k | 240 | 260 |
| Avg summer high °F | 82 | 85 |
| Avg winter low °F | 21 | 66 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 4 | 5 |