2026 Relocation & Cost Arbitrage Engine

Relocation: Portland-South Portland, ME to Peoria, IL

Data updated · Sources: HUD FY 2027 Fair Market Rents, EPI 2026 Family Budget, 2026 tax tables · Methodology

Income tax, HUD Fair Market Rents and EPI living costs for a move from Portland-South Portland, ME to Peoria, IL.

Popular Corridors:
Equivalent Salary
$76,300
To maintain parity
Cost of Living Delta
-23.7%
Overall expenditure basket
Annual Tax Delta
+$324
State + local taxes
Annual 1BR Rent Delta
-$10,836
HUD Fair Market Rents
Net Annual Buffer
+$11,160/yr
Tax + housing gain

Interactive Purchasing Power Equivalency Workbench

Adjust your current salary at origin to dynamically compute the statutory tax burden, housing costs, and discretionary cash in both markets.

Presets:
$
$30,000 $100,000 $200,000 $300,000
Origin Location

Portland-South Portland, ME

COL 130.5
Gross Annual Income $100,000
Federal Income Tax -$13,170
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$7,650
State Income Tax -$5,129
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $74,051
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$22,368
Discretionary Cash Flow $51,683
Target Market
Destination Location

Peoria, IL

COL 99.6
Gross Parity Income $76,300
Federal Income Tax -$7,956
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$5,837
State Income Tax -$3,632
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $58,875
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$11,532
Discretionary Cash Flow $47,343

EPI family budgets put living costs 23.7% lower in Peoria, IL than in Portland-South Portland, ME, so $100,000 in Portland goes about as far as $76,300 in Peoria. HUD's one-bedroom Fair Market Rent is $1,864 a month in Portland and $961 in Peoria, $10,836 a year less. On the same $100,000 salary a single filer pays $324 less a year in federal, state and local income tax and FICA in Peoria. Taxes and one-bedroom rent together leave you about $11,160 a year better off. The BLS median wage across all occupations is $56,960 in Portland and $49,590 in Peoria.

Itemized Cost of Living Expenditure Arbitrage

Category-by-category breakdown of monthly baseline consumption between origin and destination.

Expenditure Category Portland-South Portland (Monthly) Peoria (Monthly) Monthly Delta ($) Difference (%)
Housing (1BR Fair Market Rent)$1,864$961-$903-48.4%
Food & Groceries$403$353-$50-12.4%
Transportation$1,069$1,052-$17-1.6%
Healthcare$518$590+$72+13.9%
Other Necessities$553$332-$221-40.0%
Total Taxes (Federal, State, Local, FICA)$2,162$2,135-$27-1.2%

HUD Fair Market Rent Differential

1-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$903/mo (-48.4%)
Portland-South Portland: $1,864/mo Peoria: $961/mo
2-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$1,141/mo (-48.5%)
Portland-South Portland: $2,353/mo Peoria: $1,212/mo

EPI Living Wage Benchmark Comparison

1 Adult (No Children) -$6.85/hr (-23.7%)
Portland-South Portland: $28.87/hr Peoria: $22.02/hr
2 Adults + 1 Child (per earner) -$6.04/hr (-21.6%)
Portland-South Portland: $27.95/hr Peoria: $21.91/hr

Top Local Occupations Wage Parity

BLS median wage comparisons across benchmark roles between both metropolitan labor markets.

Occupation Title Industry Sector Portland-South Portland Median Peoria Median Nominal Wage Delta Action
Registered Nurse (RN)HealthcareHealthcare$88,470$81,010-$7,460 (-8.4%)View Dossier
General and Operations ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$105,390$98,290-$7,100 (-6.7%)View Dossier
Accountant & AuditorFinanceFinance$79,790$79,540-$250 (-0.3%)View Dossier
Software EngineerTechnologyTechnology$128,710$130,590+$1,880 (+1.5%)View Dossier
ElectricianSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$71,660$80,460+$8,800 (+12.3%)View Dossier
Financial ManagerFinanceFinance$138,590$155,840+$17,250 (+12.4%)View Dossier
Plumber & PipefitterSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$64,500$85,090+$20,590 (+31.9%)View Dossier
WelderSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$66,420$58,960-$7,460 (-11.2%)View Dossier
Project Management SpecialistBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$105,530$123,730+$18,200 (+17.2%)View Dossier
Quality Control InspectorIndustrial ManufacturingIndustrial Manufacturing$60,860$56,770-$4,090 (-6.7%)View Dossier
Medical and Health Services ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$127,650$110,510-$17,140 (-13.4%)View Dossier
CNC MachinistIndustrial ManufacturingIndustrial Manufacturing$65,200$51,680-$13,520 (-20.7%)View Dossier

Major US Inter-Metro Relocation Corridors

Empirical cost differentials and statutory tax savings across high-volume migration routes.

New York-Newark-Jersey City → Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos

On $100k: $8,301 less tax and $14,388 less 1BR rent a year

-30.6% COL+$22,689/yr
San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont → Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos

On $100k: $6,211 less tax and $17,676 less 1BR rent a year

-30.4% COL+$23,887/yr
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin → Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington

On $100k: $4,805 less tax and $2,928 less 1BR rent a year

-2.2% COL+$7,733/yr
San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont → Columbus

On $100k: $1,729 less tax and $19,884 less 1BR rent a year

-41.0% COL+$21,613/yr
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim → Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler

On $100k: $4,113 less tax and $10,908 less 1BR rent a year

-13.5% COL+$15,021/yr
Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue → Denver-Aurora-Centennial

On $100k: $3,761 more tax and $4,188 less 1BR rent a year

-13.6% COL+$427/yr
Boston-Cambridge-Newton → Raleigh-Cary

On $100k: $1,299 less tax and $11,592 less 1BR rent a year

-16.2% COL+$12,891/yr
New York-Newark-Jersey City → Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach

On $100k: $8,301 less tax and $7,296 less 1BR rent a year

-27.3% COL+$15,597/yr

Portland-South Portland, ME to Peoria, IL Relocation FAQs

About $76,300. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (130.5 in Portland-South Portland, ME, 99.6 in Peoria, IL, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Triangular Relocation & Tax Silo

Portland-South Portland, ME to Peoria, IL: State Paychecks, Rents & Reciprocal Corridor

Reverse Route: Peoria, IL to Portland-South Portland, ME
Relocation: Portland-South Portland, ME to Peoria, IL Overview

Portland-South Portland, ME to Peoria, IL: 2026 federal, state and local income tax, HUD Fair Market Rents and EPI living costs compared on the same salary.

Quick answers
How much salary do I need in Peoria, IL to match $100,000 in Portland-South Portland, ME?

About $76,300. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (130.5 in Portland-South Portland, ME, 99.6 in Peoria, IL, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Is Peoria, IL cheaper than Portland-South Portland, ME?

EPI's family budgets for a single adult put overall living costs 23.7% lower in Peoria, IL than in Portland-South Portland, ME. The budgets cover housing, food, transportation, health care and other necessities.