What is the cost of living in Portland-South Portland?

Portland-South Portland has a Regional Price Parity (RPP) of 101.9, where 100 represents the national average. Housing costs index at 105.2, which is above the national average. The average 2-bedroom rent is $1,833/month.

What is the median salary in Portland-South Portland?

The median salary in Portland-South Portland is $75,121 annually (mean: $78,282). Top occupations include Retail Salespersons, Home Health and Personal Care Aides, Fast Food and Counter Workers.

How safe is Portland-South Portland?

The violent crime rate in the Portland-South Portland area is 102 per 100,000 population (state-level data). Property crime rate is 1149 per 100K.

What are the schools like in Portland-South Portland?

The state of ME has 570 schools (state-level data, no metro-level federal count exists) with an average student-teacher ratio of 11.1:1. Charter schools make up 2.3% of all schools.

How much does childcare cost in Portland-South Portland?

Infant center-based childcare in the Portland-South Portland area averages $11,325 per year. Preschool averages $9,566/year. These are state-level averages.

Is Portland-South Portland a good place to relocate?

Portland-South Portland has a Life Score of 45/100 (D), based on 7 of 7 available dimensions among cost of living, wages, rent, crime, schools, childcare, and environment (missing dims omitted, weights renormalized). This is a middle-of-the-pack score, where the composite lands for most US metros; look at individual dimensions to see the real trade-offs.

Where does Portland-South Portland sit among US metros on LiveAbility?

According to PlainRelocate's LiveAbility composite, Portland-South Portland ranks #94 of 387 scored US metros by LiveAbility Score (highest score = #1). That ordinal matches the /rankings/livability listing. See /methodology#corpus-placement for the exact sort basis.

Relocation profile · Federal data

Portland-South Portland, ME

BEA RPP 101.9 ranks #330 of 387 scored metros for higher prices (dearer third).

Compiled by PlainRelocate · June 15, 2026

101.9
Cost index (US=100): $1,833
2BR rent / mo: $75,121
Median salary: 57.2
LiveAbility Score

The verdict

As of June 2026, Portland-South Portland ranks #94 of 387 US metros on the LiveAbility Score (57.2/100), with its strongest marks in schools and low hazard.

#94
of 387 US metros · Above median: 1,405,012
metro-area population: 102
violent crimes per 100K (state-level): 570
schools in the state (NCES)

Weakest dimension: climate (6/100). Weigh every dimension against your own priorities, use the City Finder to re-rank by what matters to you.

According to PlainRelocate's LiveAbility composite (BEA, BLS, HUD, FBI, NCES, EPA, NOAA, and FEMA inputs), Portland-South Portland ranks #94 of 387 scored US metros by LiveAbility Score (highest score = #1). Cost-of-living index 101.9 (100 = national average), median 2-bedroom rent $1,833/mo, median salary $75,121; LiveAbility Score 57.2/100, strongest in schools and low hazard.

Signature: BEA RPP 101.9 ranks #330 of 387 scored metros for higher prices (dearer third).

Purchasing power tightens: BEA RPP 101.9 lands in the dearer third of scored metros (cuts at 91.5 / 97.0). Median 2BR rent $1,833/mo.

LiveAbility 57.2/100 puts Portland-South Portland in the top third (#94 of 387).

BLS OEWS total employment in the Portland-South Portland area is 273,870.

Portland-South Portland vs all US metros by LiveAbility Score

Where this metro's LiveAbility Score falls among every scored US metro (composite placement, not a desirability verdict)

57 Top 24% higher than 76% of 387 US metros

Metros banded by LiveAbility Score (0–100)

Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more US metros. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count and share, and where it sits relative to this entry.

Source PlainRelocate LiveAbility Score · June 2026

Portland-South Portland housing and rent

HUD Fair Market Rents for the Portland-South Portland MSA; housing RPP 105.2 (100 = national average); 2BR $1,833/mo.

Studio

$1,264

/month

1 Bedroom

$1,397

/month

2 Bedroom

$1,833

/month

3 Bedroom

$2,380

/month

4 Bedroom

$3,038

/month

Portland-South Portland wages and employment

Portland-South Portland posts 273,870 total employment with median salary $75,121 against a dearer-than-average RPP.

Median Salary

$75,121

Mean Salary

$78,282

Total Employment

273,870

Top Occupations by Employment

Occupation	Median Salary
Retail Salespersons	$37,320
Home Health and Personal Care Aides	$38,580
Fast Food and Counter Workers	$35,300
General and Operations Managers	$105,390
Registered Nurses	$88,470

Schools & Education

State-level education data for the Portland-South Portland area from NCES.

Schools

570

Enrollment

166,683

Student:Teacher

11.1:1

Title I %

Childcare Costs

State-average childcare costs for the Portland-South Portland area (DOL data).

Infant (Center)

$11,325

per year

Toddler (Center)

$10,451

per year

Preschool (Center)

$9,566

per year

Life Score Breakdown

Portland-South Portland's composite Life Score is 45/100 (D), computed across 7 of 7 dimensions.

Cost

15/100

Bottom decile

Wages

80/100

Elite

Rent

13/100

Bottom decile

Crime

91/100

Elite

Schools

1/100

Bottom decile

Childcare

36/100

Below average

Environment

67/100

Strong

LiveAbility Score

View full rankings →

Portland-South Portland ranks #94 out of 387 metros with a LiveAbility Score of 57.2/100 - a composite of 8 of 8 quality-of-life dimensions from federal data. Customize the weights to match your priorities →

Strongest dimension: Schools (100/100)

Schools

100
Low hazard

95
Safety

92
Job market

80
Air quality

76
Cost of living

15
Housing

13
Climate

6

What this shows Portland-South Portland's strongest dimensions are schools and low hazard; its weakest among scored dims is climate at 6/100. Default weights: cost 18%, jobs & housing 15% each, safety & schools 12%, air & hazard 10%, climate 8%.

Compare Portland-South Portland to

Corpus Christi Corvallis Crestview-Fort Walton Beach-Destin Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington Dalton Daphne-Fairhope-Foley

Metros near Portland-South Portland on cost, LiveAbility, or wages

Nearest out-of-state neighbors to Portland-South Portland on BEA RPP, LiveAbility, or BLS median salary, a different lens than the size-ranked list.

Similar cost of living (BEA RPP)

Similar LiveAbility score

Source: BEA Regional Price Parities, HUD Fair Market Rents, BLS OES, FBI UCR, NCES, DOL, EPA June 2026

Portland-South Portland cost figures follow BEA Regional Price Parities and HUD Fair Market Rents; Portland-South Portland wages and LiveAbility inputs follow BLS OEWS plus the federal sources listed in methodology. This information is provided for informational purposes only and does not constitute professional advice. Scores are federal-data percentiles, not a move recommendation. How this data is sourced.

Verify with BEA → · Verify with BLS → · Verify with HUD → · Verify with NOAA → · Verify with FEMA → · Verify with Census →

Thinking about Portland-South Portland?

Portland-South Portland runs a $75,121 median salary at a 101.9 cost index, ranking #94 of 387 nationally on LiveAbility.

See exactly what Portland-South Portland's pay and cost figures mean for your own budget. Salary calculator
Put Portland-South Portland head-to-head against another city on the same dimensions. Compare Portland-South Portland
Abilene is the closest related metro in this corpus -- see how it stacks up. Abilene profile
A cheaper cost index and a higher LiveAbility score don't always point the same direction -- here's how to weigh the trade-off. Cost vs quality guide

Cost, salary and score figures are federal-data percentiles, not a move recommendation.