Moving to Maine from Washington
What to Expect
A comprehensive look at what changes when you move from Washington to Maine — from daily expenses to quality of life.
If you moved from Washington to Maine, you would find that Maine is 7.9% cheaper than Washington. A $75,000 salary in Washington would need to be roughly $69,100 in Maine to maintain the same lifestyle. Expect a noticeable climate shift — Augusta averages 77°F vs 60°F in Olympia, making it significantly warmer.
How Far Will Your Money Go?
How your spending power changes when you relocate from Washington to Maine.
What does your salary buy?
$75,000 → $69,100
To maintain the same standard of living in Maine
Calculate with your salary →The biggest cost differences at a glance
Restaurants
pay 6.5% less
Groceries
pay 7.4% more
Transportation
pay 22.5% less
Housing
pay 14.6% less
Childcare
pay 6.5% more
Entertainment and Sports
pay 11.7% less
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 Maine cost about 9% less than cities in Washington.
Compare cities head-to-head
Key Indicator Comparison
How Washington and Maine 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 performs significantly better than Washington across all safety metrics.
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
Washington 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 significantly better than Washington across all what about housing? metrics.
Will I have good infrastructure?
share of households with internet
minutes each way to work
Washington generally does better on infrastructure, though Maine leads in average commute.
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
Washington 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
Washington performs 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 | Olympia | Augusta |
|---|---|---|
| Jan–Mar | 50°/34°F (10°/1°C) | 63°/37°F (17°/3°C) |
| Apr–Jun | 65°/43°F (18°/6°C) | 84°/57°F (29°/14°C) |
| Jul–Sep | 76°/49°F (24°/10°C) | 91°/67°F (33°/20°C) |
| Oct–Dec | 51°/36°F (11°/2°C) | 69°/42°F (21°/6°C) |
View all months
| Month | Olympia | Augusta |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 46°/34°F (7.7°/0.9°C) | 58°/33°F (14.4°/0.4°C) |
| Feb | 49°/33°F (9.6°/0.4°C) | 62°/36°F (16.8°/2.2°C) |
| Mar | 54°/35°F (12.2°/1.7°C) | 70°/42°F (21.1°/5.6°C) |
| Apr | 59°/38°F (14.9°/3.2°C) | 77°/48°F (25.2°/8.9°C) |
| May | 65°/43°F (18.5°/6.2°C) | 85°/57°F (29.4°/14.1°C) |
| Jun | 71°/48°F (21.4°/8.7°C) | 91°/66°F (32.8°/19.0°C) |
| Jul | 77°/51°F (24.9°/10.4°C) | 93°/70°F (34.1°/21.0°C) |
| Aug | 78°/51°F (25.4°/10.3°C) | 92°/69°F (33.2°/20.7°C) |
| Sep | 72°/46°F (22.1°/7.8°C) | 87°/63°F (30.4°/17.0°C) |
| Oct | 60°/40°F (15.7°/4.7°C) | 78°/51°F (25.4°/10.6°C) |
| Nov | 50°/36°F (10.1°/2.4°C) | 69°/41°F (20.6°/5.2°C) |
| Dec | 44°/33°F (6.8°/0.3°C) | 60°/35°F (15.6°/1.4°C) |
Data:
National Weather Service
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it cheaper to live in Maine than Washington?
Generally yes: Maine runs about 8% cheaper than Washington on average, though it depends heavily on the city.
How much money do I need to move to Maine?
A safe rule of thumb is 3 months of local expenses plus relocation costs. On a $75,000 comparable salary, that's around $17,275 in Maine for everyday spending, before movers, a truck rental, and a rental deposit.
Is Maine safe?
Maine performs significantly better than Washington across all safety metrics.
How is healthcare in Maine compared to Washington?
Washington generally does better on health & wellbeing, though Maine leads in diabetes rate.
What's the weather like in Maine compared to Washington?
The average high temperature in Augusta is 77°F, compared to 60°F in Olympia. Augusta receives around 43.6 in of rainfall per year, while Olympia gets 50.0 in.
