Trenton, NJ vs Boston, MA
Moving from Trenton to Boston? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($446,377 → $741,868 median home) and taxes.
Trenton 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 Trenton, NJ, you'd need about $107,787 in Boston, MA (+$7,787).
Livability — Trenton, NJ: 56 · Boston, MA: 48 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 2,129 sqft in Trenton vs 1,146 sqft in Boston ($235 vs $436 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Trenton, NJ | Boston, MA | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $31,476 | $38,532 | +$7,056 |
| Groceries | $4,888 | $5,040 | +$152 |
| Transportation | $3,710 | $3,210 | −$500 |
| Utilities | $2,544 | $3,180 | +$636 |
| Insurance | $1,300 | $1,800 | +$500 |
| Taxes | $21,636 | $17,694 | −$3,942 |
| Total | $65,554 | $69,455 | +$3,901 |
Side by side
| Metric | Trenton, NJ | Boston, MA |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 102.4 | 110.4 |
| Unemployment rate | 6.12% | 5.02% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 2.8% | 2.9% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 43 | 43 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.83 | $6.28 |
| Median home price | $446,377 | $741,868 |
| Home price ÷ income | 4.8× | 6.9× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | -0.1% | 1.6% |
| Price per square foot | $235 | $436 |
| Median rent | $2,623 | $3,211 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 13.2% | 11.5% |
| Combined sales tax | 6.60% | 6.25% |
| Capital gains tax | 10.75% | 9.00% |
| Property tax rate | 2.62% | 1.14% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $7,600 | $8,200 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $13,000 | $21,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | None | 2.25% |
| Avg commute (min) | 28 | 31 |
| Home insurance / yr | $1,300 | $1,800 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $2,000 | $1,500 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $900 | $800 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 23.5 | 29.4 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.25 | 3.30 |
| Violent crime /100k | 200 | 330 |
| Avg summer high °F | 86 | 82 |
| Avg winter low °F | 23 | 22 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 5 | 4 |