Measured, not characterized
Cost of Living
What it costs to live here — prices, housing, incomes, and income-tax rates — measured against peer cities with one fixed methodology per metric, applied identically to every city. Each figure links its source. This page describes; it does not explain or rank.
Portland at a glance
Portland over time
The same measurements roughly five and ten years back, from each source's own published history. The change columns are arithmetic between the published values; the United States column gives the national change over the same span.
| Measure | ~10 yrs ago | ~5 yrs ago | Latest | Portland change | US change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Price level (US=100) | 102.1 2014 | 106.4 2019 | 105.4 2024 | +3.3 pts | =100 ref |
| Housing price level (US=100) | 118.4 2014 | 131.2 2019 | 125.1 2024 | +6.7 pts | =100 ref |
| Typical rent | $1,269/mo 2016-06 | $1,540/mo 2021-06 | $1,803/mo 2026-09 | +42.0% | +58.5% |
| Typical home value | $344,759 2016-06 | $496,515 2021-06 | $539,403 2026-09 | +56.5% | +79.3% |
| Per-capita income (Multnomah Co.) | $46,657 2014 | $59,430 2019 | $78,973 2024 | +69.3% | +58.1% |
Index rows (US=100) change in points: rising points mean Portland grew more expensive relative to the national average. Rent and home-value history uses each June's value (Zillow's series starts 2015, so the ~10-year rent/home cells begin at June 2016).
How the top income-tax rate stacks
A Portland resident's top marginal rate on taxable income above $250,000 (single) / $400,000 (joint) combines three governments' rates. Each component comes from its own administering source; the total is their sum.
| Rate | Applies to taxable income above | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Oregon — top state rate | 9.9% | —* | source |
| Metro — Supportive Housing Services tax | 1% | $125,000 (single) / $200,000 (joint)† | source |
| Multnomah County — Preschool for All (1.5% tier) | 1.5% | $125,000 (single) / $200,000 (joint) | source |
| Multnomah County — PFA, additional 1.5% (3% total) | 1.5% | $250,000 (single) / $400,000 (joint) | source |
| Combined top marginal rate | 13.9% | $250,000 / $400,000 |
Passed change: the county's published PFA rate notice raises the top PFA rate to 3.8% beginning 2027-01-01, which would put the combined top rate at 14.7%.
Marginal rates on taxable income above the thresholds shown — not the rate on a household's whole income. The City's Arts Tax (a fixed amount by filing status) and its property-based levies are separate; see the tax dashboard. as of
City-set utility rates
The main charges on the combined City utility bill are set by the City Council with each year's budget, effective July 1 — the City's own rates page publishes this year's and last year's rate for each. These are fees a household cannot shop around: the change column is the Council's adopted increase.
| Charge | FY2025-26 | FY2026-27 | Adopted change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Water volume charge per ccf | $8.171 | $8.833 | +8.1% |
| Sewer volume charge (residential) per ccf | $13.54 | $14.24 | +5.2% |
| Stormwater service unit charge per service unit / 30 days | $6.31 | $6.65 | +5.4% |
| Base charge (quarterly accounts) per day | $0.8238 | $0.8906 | +8.1% |
At the City's own stated typical use (5 ccf of water a month), the two volumetric charges alone come to $115/month in FY2026-27, up from $109/month in FY2025-26 ( +6.3%) — before the base charge, stormwater, and smaller fees.
Electricity is deliberately absent: PGE and Pacific Power rates are set by the Oregon Public Utility Commission, not the City. as of 2026-10-19 · source: City utility rates page
Peer cities, same yardsticks
Every column uses exactly one methodology from one source, applied identically to every city. Rows are ordered by the combined top income-tax rate, highest first, with Portland's row highlighted; the United States row is the reference where the source publishes one.
| City | Price level (US=100) | Housing price level (US=100) | Typical rent | Typical home value | Per-capita income (core county) | Top income-tax rate (state + local) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Portland, OR | 105.4 | 125.1 | $1,803/mo | $539,403 | $78,973 | 13.9%‡ |
| Sacramento, CA | 106.7 | 130.2 | $2,269/mo | $572,813 | $69,693 | 13.3% |
| San Diego, CA | 111.9 | 179.3 | $2,967/mo | $926,961 | $84,312 | 13.3% |
| San Francisco, CA | 115.6 | 194.7 | $3,445/mo | $1,120,379 | $171,497 | 13.3% |
| Minneapolis, MN | 104.8 | 111.8 | $1,736/mo | $387,807 | $100,352 | 9.85% |
| Boise City, ID | 98.4 | 105.6 | $1,924/mo | $491,851 | $76,921 | 5.695% |
| Salt Lake City, UT | 100.9 | 123.3 | $1,644/mo | $558,850 | $75,434 | 4.55% |
| Denver, CO | 105.8 | 146.9 | $1,900/mo | $555,487 | $119,263 | 4.4% |
| Phoenix, AZ | 103.3 | 121.2 | $1,720/mo | $441,097 | $72,176 | 2.5% |
| Austin, TX | 98.1 | 120.4 | $1,603/mo | $414,273 | $98,944 | none§ |
| Dallas, TX | 103.1 | 117.9 | $1,659/mo | $358,242 | $84,975 | none§ |
| Houston, TX | 98.6 | 104.5 | $1,638/mo | $302,832 | $79,991 | none§ |
| Nashville, TN | 96.3 | 104.6 | $1,803/mo | $448,896 | $99,647 | none§ |
| Seattle, WA | 111.1 | 151.3 | $2,250/mo | $720,147 | $128,684 | none# |
| United States (reference) | 100.0 | 100.6 | $1,932/mo | $366,157 | $73,204 | — |
* Oregon's top state-bracket income threshold is not yet in the published tax-parameter record; the state rate above is sourced, but the income level it kicks in at is not, so no figure is shown.
† Published base thresholds (tax years 2021-2025). Metro states that beginning tax year 2026 the exemption thresholds are adjusted annually for inflation, so the current-year threshold is at least this amount.
‡ Portland combined: Oregon 9.9% + Metro SHS 1% (above $125,000 single / $200,000 joint) + Multnomah County PFA 3% (above $250,000 single / $400,000 joint) at top incomes — the local components apply only above those thresholds; the only peer city with local income taxes on wages. Component sources in the stack above.
§ Tax Foundation lists this state under 'none' — no state individual income tax.
# Tax Foundation lists '7.0% on capital gains income only' — no state tax on wage income.
Local income taxes: among these peer cities only Portland levies marginal local income taxes on wages (Metro SHS, Multnomah County PFA — the stack above). Denver levies a flat-dollar wage tax, not a marginal rate. Reference: Tax Foundation, Local Income Taxes (2023).
Price level (US=100): period 2024, as of 2026-09-25 · source 1 , source 2
Housing price level (US=100): period 2024, as of 2026-09-25 · source 1 , source 2
Typical rent: period 2026-09-30, as of 2026-10-19 · source 1 , source 2
Typical home value: period 2026-09-30, as of 2026-10-19 · source 1 , source 2
Per-capita income (core county): period 2024, as of 2026-09-25 · source 1 , source 2
Top income-tax rate (state + local): period 2025, as of 2026-09-25 · source 1 , source 2 , source 3
How to read this page
- Price levels are BEA Regional Price Parities for each city's metro area (U.S. average = 100) — the federal statistic for how far a dollar goes in one place versus another.
- Rents and home values are Zillow Research's ZORI and ZHVI metro indexes — the typical (35th–65th percentile) market rent and home value, one method nationwide. Data provided by Zillow Research.
- Income is BEA per-capita personal income for each city's core county (Portland: Multnomah County) — the affordability context for the price figures.
- Income-tax rates show what a resident of each city faces at the top margin: the state's top individual rate (Tax Foundation annual table) plus any marginal local income taxes on wages. Among these peers only Portland has local income taxes — Metro SHS and Multnomah County PFA, each from its administering government's own page — so its cell is the combined state-plus-local figure the stack above decomposes.
- Geographies differ by metric (metro, core county, state) but are identical for every city within a metric — no figure here mixes methodologies.
- This page never says why a figure differs between cities, and it draws no link between any figure and any vote or official — measurements only.
- Outcome comparisons — homelessness, shelter beds, office vacancy — are on the Outcomes page.