Worcester, MA vs Detroit, MI
Moving from Worcester to Detroit? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($482,611 → $269,080 median home) and taxes.
Worcester vs Detroit 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 Worcester, MA, you'd need about $95,344 in Detroit, MI (−$4,656).
Livability — Worcester, MA: 56 · Detroit, MI: 62 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 1,761 sqft in Worcester vs 3,066 sqft in Detroit ($284 vs $163 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Worcester, MA | Detroit, MI | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $26,184 | $18,000 | −$8,184 |
| Groceries | $4,938 | $4,896 | −$41 |
| Transportation | $3,210 | $4,575 | +$1,365 |
| Utilities | $3,180 | $2,316 | −$864 |
| Insurance | $1,800 | $1,300 | −$500 |
| Taxes | $16,011 | $9,547 | −$6,463 |
| Total | $55,322 | $40,634 | −$14,688 |
Side by side
| Metric | Worcester, MA | Detroit, MI |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 103.0 | 98.2 |
| Unemployment rate | 5.78% | 6.60% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 4.3% | 1.7% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 42 | 42 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.86 | $5.59 |
| Median home price | $482,611 | $269,080 |
| Home price ÷ income | 5.6× | 3.7× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 1.8% | 2.8% |
| Price per square foot | $284 | $163 |
| Median rent | $2,182 | $1,500 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 11.5% | 10.0% |
| Combined sales tax | 6.25% | 6.00% |
| Capital gains tax | 9.00% | 4.25% |
| Property tax rate | 1.39% | 1.43% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $8,200 | $6,500 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $21,000 | $11,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | 2.25% | 0.61% |
| Avg commute (min) | 29 | 27 |
| Home insurance / yr | $1,800 | $1,300 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,500 | $2,700 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $800 | $600 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 29.4 | 21.4 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.30 | 3.35 |
| Natural gas / mo | $108 | $78 |
| Water & sewer / mo | $71 | $74 |
| Home internet / mo | $78 | $78 |
| Violent crime /100k | 330 | 460 |
| Avg summer high °F | 82 | 83 |
| Avg winter low °F | 22 | 16 |
| Annual precipitation (in) | 43.6 | 34.3 |
| Annual snowfall (in) | 49.2 | 45.0 |
| Sunshine (% possible) | 58% | 53% |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 4 | 3 |