City comparison
Boston, MA is about 80 miles (125 km) from Springfield, MA in a straight line. By road, the drive is roughly 100 miles, or about 1 h 45 min behind the wheel at highway speeds.
Driving distance is a rough estimate (great-circle × 1.25); driving time assumes a 60 mph blended average. Real trips run 10–20% longer with stops.
A direct flight from Boston, MA to Springfield, MA takes about 10 min, covering roughly 80 miles in a straight line. Connecting itineraries with a layover typically add 1–3 hours.
Block-to-block estimate at ~500 mph cruise, including taxi, climb, and descent — what an airline would publish, not pure airborne time.
Boston has a population of 665,945, vs 155,305 in Springfield — about 4.3× larger by population. By land area, Boston covers about 48 sq mi vs 32 sq mi for Springfield.
Population from US Census ACS. Land area from the Census Gazetteer (city proper, excluding inland water).
Cost indices by category, with the US city average (100) marked.
Index: 100 = US city average. Lower is more affordable.
Side-by-side costs, salaries, and sub-category indices.
| Metric | Boston | Springfield | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $1,981/mo | $1,047/mo | 89.2% higher in Boston |
| Median home value | $684,900 | $198,500 | 245.0% higher in Boston |
| Median household income | $89,212 | $47,677 | 87.1% higher in Boston |
| Groceries index | 100.1 | 97.4 | 2.8% higher in Boston |
| Utilities index | 147.4 | 150.0 | 1.8% higher in Springfield |
| Transportation index | 102.2 | 100.7 | 1.5% higher in Boston |
| Healthcare index | 106.4 | 101.5 | 4.8% higher in Boston |
How much you'd need to earn in the other city to keep the same standard of living.
If you earn $100,000 in Boston, you'd need $74,784 in Springfield to maintain your standard of living.
Climate, safety, and demographics side by side.
Springfield, MA is about 25.2% cheaper overall than Boston, MA, based on our cost-of-living index. Housing costs are roughly 95% higher in Boston than in Springfield. If you earn $80,000 in Boston, you'd need about $59,827 in Springfield to keep the same standard of living.