Salem, OR vs Baltimore, MD
Moving from Salem to Baltimore? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($454,689 → $405,877 median home) and taxes.
Salem vs Baltimore 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 Salem, OR, you'd need about $100,708 in Baltimore, MD (+$708).
Livability — Salem, OR: 59 · Baltimore, MD: 57 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 1,869 sqft in Salem vs 2,341 sqft in Baltimore ($268 vs $214 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Salem, OR | Baltimore, MD | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $19,536 | $23,028 | +$3,492 |
| Groceries | $5,239 | $5,075 | −$164 |
| Transportation | $3,680 | $3,685 | +$5 |
| Utilities | $1,704 | $2,388 | +$684 |
| Insurance | $900 | $1,400 | +$500 |
| Taxes | $13,135 | $11,584 | −$1,551 |
| Total | $44,194 | $47,160 | +$2,966 |
Side by side
| Metric | Salem, OR | Baltimore, MD |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 102.5 | 103.2 |
| Unemployment rate | 5.41% | 4.86% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 5.7% | 1.7% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 42 | 42 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.83 | $5.87 |
| Median home price | $454,689 | $405,877 |
| Home price ÷ income | 6.3× | 4.3× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 0.4% | 0.8% |
| Price per square foot | $268 | $214 |
| Median rent | $1,628 | $1,919 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 10.8% | 11.3% |
| Combined sales tax | 0.00% | 6.00% |
| Capital gains tax | 9.90% | 5.75% |
| Property tax rate | 0.90% | 1.04% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,600 | $7,200 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $15,000 | $16,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | None | None |
| Avg commute (min) | 25 | 30 |
| Home insurance / yr | $900 | $1,400 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,500 | $1,900 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $650 | $750 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $600 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 15.8 | 22.1 |
| Gas $/gal | 4.10 | 3.30 |
| Natural gas / mo | $58 | $88 |
| Water & sewer / mo | $224 | $106 |
| Home internet / mo | $82 | $82 |
| Violent crime /100k | 340 | 450 |
| Avg summer high °F | 82 | 88 |
| Avg winter low °F | 34 | 27 |
| Annual precipitation (in) | 43.7 | 45.0 |
| Annual snowfall (in) | 3.4 | 19.3 |
| Sunshine (% possible) | 48% | 57% |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 4 | 4 |