Cost of Living
per year
per month
How Hillsboro's prices compare to the US city average across major spending categories.
How far does your salary go in Hillsboro?
Your $100,000 in Hillsboro has the same purchasing power as $88,456 in the average US city. You'd need $11,544 more here to maintain that standard of living.
Demographics and workforce data from the US Census ACS 5-Year.
bachelor's or higher
Climate, safety, and walkability indicators.
See a side-by-side breakdown of cost of living, housing, and salaries.
Popular comparisons
Sorted by affordability — most affordable first.
Within 10 points of Hillsboro's cost index of 113, sorted by closest match.
If you're weighing a move to Hillsboro, the short answer is that the city has a few genuine arguments going for it — most obviously paychecks come in above the us average and lower-than-average crime numbers, plus 3 more things worth knowing. Here's the longer version.
Median household income in Hillsboro is $98,891, a step above the national median of about $75k. The local job market leans toward industries that pay better than average, and that shows up in the take-home for most working households here.
Hillsboro reports about 2,909 crime incidents per 100,000 residents — a step below the US average of around 3,500. The citywide number averages over neighborhoods that can vary a lot, but the headline number is friendlier than most American cities of comparable size.
Hillsboro's Bike Score is 60/100 — the kind of number you only get when a city has built real bike infrastructure (protected lanes, connected routes, drivers who expect cyclists). For commuting or just for getting around, the bike is a serious option here, not a hobby.
The average one-way commute in Hillsboro is about 23 minutes — short by US standards (the national average is closer to 27). Over a year of working days, that's hundreds of hours that don't get spent in traffic, which is the kind of thing you notice in the weekend rather than the weekday.
42% of adults 25 and over in Hillsboro hold a bachelor's degree or higher — meaningfully above the US average of around 36%. That correlates with the things you'd expect: stronger schools, more white-collar employers, more bookstores than the population alone would predict.
Reasons are pulled from Hillsboro's actual data — Census ACS, BLS, BEA, NOAA, EPA AQS, FBI, and Walk Score. We don't list positives that aren't supported by the numbers, which is why different cities show different sections.
Now and then. Hillsboro's winters are cool rather than truly cold — about 36°F on average — so most of the precipitation falls as rain. A snowy morning happens a few times a season; sustained accumulation is rare.
Mild on the cold side. Hillsboro's winter average of about 36°F is the kind of weather where you want a jacket but the heating bill is manageable. Snow is rare, frost is occasional, and the lawn never really browns out.
Pleasantly warm. Hillsboro's summer averages around 80°F — comfortable for outdoor evenings, hot enough on peak days to warrant AC but mild compared to the Sun Belt.
Approximately USDA Hardiness Zone 9. That's the band gardeners use to pick plants — anything rated for Zone 9 or colder should survive a typical winter in Hillsboro. (The estimate is derived from our winter-temperature data; the official USDA map uses station-level annual minimums and may differ by half a zone.)
Hillsboro sits at about 164 feet (50 m) above sea level — low-lying, but with enough cushion that day-to-day life isn't affected by ocean levels.
Average for an American city. Hillsboro's reported crime rate of about 2,909 per 100,000 residents sits roughly in line with the US baseline of ~3,500. Like anywhere else, the citywide number masks real differences between neighborhoods — worth looking at specific areas before deciding.
Yes, noticeably. Hillsboro's cost-of-living index runs 113, about 13% above the US baseline. Housing usually accounts for most of the markup; groceries and services run higher too but with less drama.
Mostly car-dependent. Hillsboro's Walk Score of 29/100 means a handful of errands work on foot — depending on the neighborhood — but most residents still need a car for the rest. Transit Score is 57 out of 100.
Roughly $79,135 a year would match the lifestyle of someone earning $70,000 in an average US city. That's a starting point, not a target — negotiate higher when you can. Median rent in Hillsboro runs about $1,797/mo — keeping housing under 30% of gross income points to a similar floor on what you'd want to earn.