Reno, NV vs Boston, MA
Moving from Reno to Boston? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($570,546 → $741,868 median home) and taxes.
Reno 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 Reno, NV, you'd need about $112,617 in Boston, MA (+$12,617).
Livability — Reno, NV: 62 · Boston, MA: 48 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 1,665 sqft in Reno vs 1,146 sqft in Boston ($300 vs $436 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Reno, NV | Boston, MA | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $23,736 | $38,532 | +$14,796 |
| Groceries | $4,841 | $5,040 | +$198 |
| Transportation | $4,740 | $3,210 | −$1,530 |
| Utilities | $1,548 | $3,180 | +$1,632 |
| Insurance | $1,300 | $1,800 | +$500 |
| Taxes | $5,060 | $17,694 | +$12,634 |
| Total | $41,225 | $69,455 | +$28,230 |
Side by side
| Metric | Reno, NV | Boston, MA |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 98.0 | 110.4 |
| Unemployment rate | 5.01% | 5.02% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 9.2% | 2.9% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 50 | 43 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.58 | $6.28 |
| Median home price | $570,546 | $741,868 |
| Home price ÷ income | 7.0× | 6.9× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 0.0% | 1.6% |
| Price per square foot | $300 | $436 |
| Median rent | $1,978 | $3,211 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 9.6% | 11.5% |
| Combined sales tax | 8.23% | 6.25% |
| Capital gains tax | None | 9.00% |
| Property tax rate | 0.48% | 1.14% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,400 | $8,200 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $11,000 | $21,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | 2.12% | 2.25% |
| Avg commute (min) | 22 | 31 |
| Home insurance / yr | $1,300 | $1,800 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $2,400 | $1,500 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $500 | $800 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $400 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 14.3 | 29.4 |
| Gas $/gal | 4.20 | 3.30 |
| Violent crime /100k | 460 | 330 |
| Avg summer high °F | 95 | 82 |
| Avg winter low °F | 30 | 22 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 3 | 4 |