Spokane, WA vs Baltimore, MD
Moving from Spokane to Baltimore? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($423,842 → $405,877 median home) and taxes.
Spokane 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 Spokane, WA, you'd need about $102,238 in Baltimore, MD (+$2,238).
Livability — Spokane, WA: 59 · Baltimore, MD: 57 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 2,123 sqft in Spokane vs 2,341 sqft in Baltimore ($236 vs $214 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Spokane, WA | Baltimore, MD | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $18,588 | $23,028 | +$4,440 |
| Groceries | $5,246 | $5,075 | −$171 |
| Transportation | $4,075 | $3,685 | −$390 |
| Utilities | $1,548 | $2,388 | +$840 |
| Insurance | $1,500 | $1,400 | −$100 |
| Taxes | $6,160 | $11,584 | +$5,424 |
| Total | $37,117 | $47,160 | +$10,043 |
Side by side
| Metric | Spokane, WA | Baltimore, MD |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 100.9 | 103.2 |
| Unemployment rate | 5.75% | 4.86% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 6.9% | 1.7% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 42 | 42 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.74 | $5.87 |
| Median home price | $423,842 | $405,877 |
| Home price ÷ income | 6.1× | 4.3× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 0.3% | 0.8% |
| Price per square foot | $236 | $214 |
| Median rent | $1,549 | $1,919 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 10.7% | 11.3% |
| Combined sales tax | 9.38% | 6.00% |
| Capital gains tax | 7.00% | 5.75% |
| Property tax rate | 0.88% | 1.04% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,600 | $7,200 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $16,000 | $16,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | None | None |
| Avg commute (min) | 23 | 30 |
| Home insurance / yr | $1,500 | $1,400 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,600 | $1,900 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $700 | $750 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $700 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 14.4 | 22.1 |
| Gas $/gal | 4.55 | 3.30 |
| Natural gas / mo | $58 | $88 |
| Water & sewer / mo | $167 | $106 |
| Home internet / mo | $83 | $82 |
| Violent crime /100k | 375 | 450 |
| Avg summer high °F | 76 | 88 |
| Avg winter low °F | 37 | 27 |
| Annual precipitation (in) | 16.6 | 45.0 |
| Annual snowfall (in) | 45.0 | 19.3 |
| Sunshine (% possible) | 52% | 57% |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 5 | 4 |