Roanoke, VA vs Boston, MA
Moving from Roanoke to Boston? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($301,139 → $741,868 median home) and taxes.
Roanoke 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 Roanoke, VA, you'd need about $121,038 in Boston, MA (+$21,038).
Livability — Roanoke, VA: 73 · Boston, MA: 48 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 3,320 sqft in Roanoke vs 1,146 sqft in Boston ($151 vs $436 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Roanoke, VA | Boston, MA | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $16,836 | $38,532 | +$21,696 |
| Groceries | $4,853 | $5,040 | +$186 |
| Transportation | $3,080 | $3,210 | +$130 |
| Utilities | $1,872 | $3,180 | +$1,308 |
| Insurance | $1,500 | $1,800 | +$300 |
| Taxes | $9,549 | $17,694 | +$8,145 |
| Total | $37,690 | $69,455 | +$31,765 |
Side by side
| Metric | Roanoke, VA | Boston, MA |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 91.2 | 110.4 |
| Unemployment rate | 4.05% | 5.02% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 0.5% | 2.9% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 40 | 43 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.19 | $6.28 |
| Median home price | $301,139 | $741,868 |
| Home price ÷ income | 4.6× | 6.9× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 3.8% | 1.6% |
| Price per square foot | $151 | $436 |
| Median rent | $1,403 | $3,211 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 12.5% | 11.5% |
| Combined sales tax | 5.73% | 6.25% |
| Capital gains tax | 5.75% | 9.00% |
| Property tax rate | 0.81% | 1.14% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,800 | $8,200 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $15,000 | $21,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | 3.97% | 2.25% |
| Avg commute (min) | 24 | 31 |
| Home insurance / yr | $1,500 | $1,800 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,400 | $1,500 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $700 | $800 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 17.4 | 29.4 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.20 | 3.30 |
| Violent crime /100k | 200 | 330 |
| Avg summer high °F | 87 | 82 |
| Avg winter low °F | 28 | 22 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 3 | 4 |