Raleigh, NC vs Boston, MA
Moving from Raleigh to Boston? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($438,364 → $741,868 median home) and taxes.
Raleigh vs Boston 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 Raleigh, NC, you'd need about $112,239 in Boston, MA (+$12,239).
Livability — Raleigh, NC: 64 · Boston, MA: 48 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 2,281 sqft in Raleigh vs 1,146 sqft in Boston ($219 vs $436 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Raleigh, NC | Boston, MA | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $20,328 | $38,532 | +$18,204 |
| Groceries | $4,840 | $5,040 | +$200 |
| Transportation | $3,130 | $3,210 | +$80 |
| Utilities | $1,752 | $3,180 | +$1,428 |
| Insurance | $2,000 | $1,800 | −$200 |
| Taxes | $9,294 | $17,694 | +$8,400 |
| Total | $41,344 | $69,455 | +$28,112 |
Side by side
| Metric | Raleigh, NC | Boston, MA |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 98.4 | 110.4 |
| Unemployment rate | 4.19% | 5.02% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 11.5% | 2.9% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 42 | 42 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.60 | $6.28 |
| Median home price | $438,364 | $741,868 |
| Home price ÷ income | 4.8× | 6.9× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | -2.2% | 1.6% |
| Price per square foot | $219 | $436 |
| Median rent | $1,694 | $3,211 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 9.9% | 11.5% |
| Combined sales tax | 6.98% | 6.25% |
| Capital gains tax | 4.25% | 9.00% |
| Property tax rate | 0.75% | 1.14% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,600 | $8,200 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $10,000 | $21,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | 1.10% | 2.25% |
| Avg commute (min) | 27 | 31 |
| Home insurance / yr | $2,000 | $1,800 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,400 | $1,500 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $800 | $800 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 16.3 | 29.4 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.20 | 3.30 |
| Natural gas / mo | $62 | $108 |
| Water & sewer / mo | $78 | $71 |
| Home internet / mo | $80 | $78 |
| Violent crime /100k | 400 | 330 |
| Avg summer high °F | 89 | 82 |
| Avg winter low °F | 30 | 22 |
| Annual precipitation (in) | 46.1 | 43.6 |
| Annual snowfall (in) | 5.2 | 49.2 |
| Sunshine (% possible) | 58% | 58% |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 3 | 4 |