Winston, NC vs Portland, OR
Moving from Winston to Portland? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($283,871 → $552,022 median home) and taxes.
Winston 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 Winston, NC, you'd need about $116,497 in Portland, OR (+$16,497).
Livability — Winston, NC: 71 · Portland, OR: 55 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 3,524 sqft in Winston vs 1,540 sqft in Portland ($142 vs $325 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Winston, NC | Portland, OR | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $18,552 | $21,564 | +$3,012 |
| Groceries | $4,840 | $5,240 | +$400 |
| Transportation | $3,130 | $3,680 | +$550 |
| Utilities | $1,752 | $1,704 | −$48 |
| Insurance | $2,000 | $900 | −$1,100 |
| Taxes | $8,183 | $14,382 | +$6,199 |
| Total | $38,457 | $47,470 | +$9,013 |
Side by side
| Metric | Winston, NC | Portland, OR |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 91.6 | 106.7 |
| Unemployment rate | 5.18% | 5.06% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 3.0% | 5.2% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 50 | 38 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.21 | $6.07 |
| Median home price | $283,871 | $552,022 |
| Home price ÷ income | 4.7× | 6.1× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 2.8% | -1.1% |
| Price per square foot | $142 | $325 |
| Median rent | $1,546 | $1,797 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 9.9% | 10.8% |
| Combined sales tax | 6.98% | 0.00% |
| Capital gains tax | 4.25% | 9.90% |
| Property tax rate | 0.77% | 0.92% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,600 | $6,600 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $10,000 | $15,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | 1.10% | None |
| Avg commute (min) | 24 | 26 |
| Home insurance / yr | $2,000 | $900 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,400 | $1,500 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $800 | $650 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $600 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 16.3 | 15.8 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.20 | 4.10 |
| Violent crime /100k | 400 | 340 |
| Avg summer high °F | 89 | 82 |
| Avg winter low °F | 30 | 34 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 3 | 4 |