Tulsa, OK vs Boston, MA
Moving from Tulsa to Boston? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($253,725 → $741,868 median home) and taxes.
Tulsa 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 Tulsa, OK, you'd need about $122,802 in Boston, MA (+$22,802).
Livability — Tulsa, OK: 71 · Boston, MA: 48 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 3,745 sqft in Tulsa vs 1,146 sqft in Boston ($134 vs $436 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Tulsa, OK | Boston, MA | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $16,224 | $38,532 | +$22,308 |
| Groceries | $4,667 | $5,040 | +$373 |
| Transportation | $3,575 | $3,210 | −$365 |
| Utilities | $1,440 | $3,180 | +$1,740 |
| Insurance | $4,400 | $1,800 | −$2,600 |
| Taxes | $9,670 | $17,694 | +$8,024 |
| Total | $39,976 | $69,455 | +$29,480 |
Side by side
| Metric | Tulsa, OK | Boston, MA |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 89.9 | 110.4 |
| Unemployment rate | 5.14% | 5.02% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 4.1% | 2.9% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 42 | 42 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.12 | $6.28 |
| Median home price | $253,725 | $741,868 |
| Home price ÷ income | 3.9× | 6.9× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 2.8% | 1.6% |
| Price per square foot | $134 | $436 |
| Median rent | $1,352 | $3,211 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 9.0% | 11.5% |
| Combined sales tax | 8.99% | 6.25% |
| Capital gains tax | 4.75% | 9.00% |
| Property tax rate | 0.94% | 1.14% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,300 | $8,200 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $9,000 | $21,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | None | 2.25% |
| Avg commute (min) | 22 | 31 |
| Home insurance / yr | $4,400 | $1,800 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $2,000 | $1,500 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $750 | $800 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $300 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 13.3 | 29.4 |
| Gas $/gal | 2.95 | 3.30 |
| Natural gas / mo | $56 | $108 |
| Water & sewer / mo | $83 | $71 |
| Home internet / mo | $76 | $78 |
| Violent crime /100k | 460 | 330 |
| Avg summer high °F | 94 | 82 |
| Avg winter low °F | 27 | 22 |
| Annual precipitation (in) | 41.0 | 43.6 |
| Annual snowfall (in) | 8.7 | 49.2 |
| Sunshine (% possible) | 62% | 58% |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 2 | 4 |