Moving to Massachusetts from Maine
What to Expect
A comprehensive look at what changes when you move from Maine to Massachusetts — from daily expenses to quality of life.
If you moved from Maine to Massachusetts, you would find that Massachusetts is 15.0% more expensive than Maine. A $75,000 salary in Maine would need to be roughly $86,200 in Massachusetts to maintain the same lifestyle. Expect a noticeable climate shift — Boston averages 59°F vs 77°F in Augusta, making it significantly cooler.
How Far Will Your Money Go?
How your spending power changes when you relocate from Maine to Massachusetts.
What does your salary buy?
$75,000 → $86,200
To maintain the same standard of living in Massachusetts
Calculate with your salary →The biggest cost differences at a glance
Restaurants
pay 4.3% more
Groceries
pay 1.5% less
Transportation
pay 19.4% more
Housing
pay 38.5% more
Childcare
pay 0.3% less
Entertainment and Sports
pay 11.5% more
Data: MyLifeElsewhere's crowdsourced cost of living database, with prices submitted and updated by users worldwide. Exchange rates are refreshed regularly from public sources.
Cost of living by city
Cost of living varies a lot by city. Each figure is a city's overall cost of living as a percentage of New York City (the priciest, = 100%).
On average, cities in Massachusetts cost about 24% more than cities in Maine.
Compare cities head-to-head
Key Indicator Comparison
How Maine and Massachusetts stack up on safety, healthcare, jobs, and infrastructure.
Is it safe?
incidents per 100,000 people per year
incidents per 100,000 people per year
Maine generally does better on safety, though Massachusetts leads in property crime rate.
How's the healthcare?
share of people without health insurance
share of adults with obesity
share of adults with diabetes
share of adults who smoke
Massachusetts generally does better on health & wellbeing, though Maine leads in diabetes rate.
What about housing?
typical price of a home
typical monthly gross rent
share of homes that are owner-occupied
Maine performs better than Massachusetts across all what about housing? metrics.
Will I have good infrastructure?
share of households with internet
minutes each way to work
Maine generally does better on infrastructure, though Massachusetts leads in internet access.
What are the job prospects?
percentage of the labour force without work
a broad measure of economic output per person
typical annual income of a household
share of people below the poverty line
Massachusetts generally does better on employment & economy, though Maine leads in unemployment rate.
Is it good for families?
average years of life at birth
share of adults with a 4-year college degree
Massachusetts performs significantly better than Maine across all family life metrics.
Sources: US Census Bureau (American Community Survey) (2023), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (PLACES) (2022), FBI Uniform Crime Reporting (2023), Bureau of Labor Statistics (2025), Bureau of Economic Analysis (2024), OECD Regional Demography (2020). How we calculate this
What's the Climate Like?
Monthly averages — select a city to compare.
Avg. annual high / low
Avg. annual high / low
| Months | Augusta | Boston |
|---|---|---|
| Jan–Mar | 63°/37°F (17°/3°C) | 40°/26°F (4°/-3°C) |
| Apr–Jun | 84°/57°F (29°/14°C) | 66°/50°F (19°/10°C) |
| Jul–Sep | 91°/67°F (33°/20°C) | 78°/62°F (25°/17°C) |
| Oct–Dec | 69°/42°F (21°/6°C) | 51°/38°F (11°/3°C) |
View all months
| Month | Augusta | Boston |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 58°/33°F (14.4°/0.4°C) | 36°/22°F (2.1°/-5.4°C) |
| Feb | 62°/36°F (16.8°/2.2°C) | 39°/25°F (3.7°/-4.1°C) |
| Mar | 70°/42°F (21.1°/5.6°C) | 45°/31°F (7.4°/-0.5°C) |
| Apr | 77°/48°F (25.2°/8.9°C) | 56°/41°F (13.1°/4.8°C) |
| May | 85°/57°F (29.4°/14.1°C) | 66°/50°F (18.9°/9.9°C) |
| Jun | 91°/66°F (32.8°/19.0°C) | 76°/60°F (24.4°/15.3°C) |
| Jul | 93°/70°F (34.1°/21.0°C) | 81°/65°F (27.4°/18.6°C) |
| Aug | 92°/69°F (33.2°/20.7°C) | 80°/65°F (26.4°/18.1°C) |
| Sep | 87°/63°F (30.4°/17.0°C) | 72°/57°F (22.4°/14.1°C) |
| Oct | 78°/51°F (25.4°/10.6°C) | 61°/47°F (16.3°/8.1°C) |
| Nov | 69°/41°F (20.6°/5.2°C) | 51°/38°F (10.8°/3.3°C) |
| Dec | 60°/35°F (15.6°/1.4°C) | 41°/28°F (5.1°/-2.1°C) |
Data:
National Weather Service
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it cheaper to live in Massachusetts than Maine?
Day-to-day costs in Massachusetts run about 15% higher than Maine on average; specific cities can swing further.
How much money do I need to move to Massachusetts?
A safe rule of thumb is 3 months of local expenses plus relocation costs. On a $75,000 comparable salary, that's around $21,550 in Massachusetts for everyday spending, before movers, a truck rental, and a rental deposit.
Is Massachusetts safe?
Maine generally does better on safety, though Massachusetts leads in property crime rate.
How is healthcare in Massachusetts compared to Maine?
Massachusetts generally does better on health & wellbeing, though Maine leads in diabetes rate.
What's the weather like in Massachusetts compared to Maine?
The average high temperature in Boston is 59°F, compared to 77°F in Augusta. Boston receives around 43.8 in of rainfall per year, while Augusta gets 43.6 in.
