City comparison
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 | Houston | Worcester | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $1,235/mo | $1,312/mo | 5.9% lower in A |
| Median home value | $235,000 | $305,600 | 23.1% lower in A |
| Median household income | $60,440 | $63,011 | 4.1% lower in A |
| Groceries index | 97.7 | 94.9 | 3.0% higher in A |
| Utilities index | 106.5 | 91.4 | 16.5% higher in A |
| Transportation index | 97.3 | 84.5 | 15.1% higher in A |
| Healthcare index | 90.9 | 88.3 | 2.9% higher in A |
How much you'd need to earn in the other city to keep the same standard of living.
If you earn $100,000 in Houston, you'd need $97,633 in Worcester to maintain your standard of living.
Climate, safety, and demographics side by side.
Worcester, MA is about 2.4% cheaper overall than Houston, TX, based on our cost-of-living index. Housing costs are roughly 6% lower in Houston than in Worcester. If you earn $80,000 in Houston, you'd need about $78,106 in Worcester to keep the same standard of living.