Salem, OR vs Portland, OR
Moving from Salem to Portland? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($454,689 → $552,022 median home) and taxes.
Salem vs Portland 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 $104,153 in Portland, OR (+$4,153).
Livability — Salem, OR: 59 · Portland, OR: 55 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 1,869 sqft in Salem vs 1,540 sqft in Portland ($268 vs $325 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Salem, OR | Portland, OR | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $19,536 | $21,564 | +$2,028 |
| Groceries | $5,239 | $5,240 | +$1 |
| Transportation | $3,680 | $3,680 | +$0 |
| Utilities | $1,704 | $1,704 | +$0 |
| Insurance | $900 | $900 | +$0 |
| Taxes | $13,135 | $14,382 | +$1,247 |
| Total | $44,194 | $47,470 | +$3,276 |
Side by side
| Metric | Salem, OR | Portland, OR |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 102.5 | 106.7 |
| Unemployment rate | 5.41% | 5.06% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 5.7% | 5.2% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 42 | 42 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.83 | $6.07 |
| Median home price | $454,689 | $552,022 |
| Home price ÷ income | 6.3× | 6.1× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 0.4% | -1.1% |
| Price per square foot | $268 | $325 |
| Median rent | $1,628 | $1,797 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 10.8% | 10.8% |
| Combined sales tax | 0.00% | 0.00% |
| Capital gains tax | 9.90% | 9.90% |
| Property tax rate | 0.90% | 0.92% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,600 | $6,600 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $15,000 | $15,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | None | None |
| Avg commute (min) | 25 | 26 |
| Home insurance / yr | $900 | $900 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,500 | $1,500 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $650 | $650 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $600 | $600 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 15.8 | 15.8 |
| Gas $/gal | 4.10 | 4.10 |
| Natural gas / mo | $58 | $58 |
| Water & sewer / mo | $224 | $224 |
| Home internet / mo | $82 | $82 |
| Violent crime /100k | 340 | 340 |
| Avg summer high °F | 82 | 82 |
| Avg winter low °F | 34 | 34 |
| Annual precipitation (in) | 43.7 | 43.7 |
| Annual snowfall (in) | 3.4 | 3.4 |
| Sunshine (% possible) | 48% | 48% |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 4 | 4 |