Billings → Merced
Relocation analysis based on 7 federal data sources
Should you move?
Moving from Billings to Merced is unfavorable: BEA regional price parity goes from 93.5 to 98.3 (US = 100), and HUD 2-bedroom rent rises by $86/mo.
- +$4,527
- BLS median salary higher in Merced
- 426 to 477
- violent crimes per 100K (FBI UCR, state-level)
- 11.8:1 to 21.5:1
- NCES student-teacher ratio
- $6,454
- DOL infant care higher / yr in Merced
BEA Regional Price Parity, HUD Fair Market Rent, BLS OEWS, FBI UCR, NCES, and DOL. The table below lets you override the composite with your own priorities.
Pros of Moving
- + $5K higher median salary
Cons of Moving
- - 5% higher cost of living
- - $86/mo more expensive rent (2BR)
- - Higher student-teacher ratios
- - More expensive childcare
- - More environmental violations
Purchasing power tightens: BEA RPP rises from 93.5 to 98.3, so the same paycheck buys less in Merced (ratio 1.05). HUD 2BR Fair Market Rent rises $86/mo ($1,032/yr) from $1,417 in Billings to $1,503 in Merced.
Billings still leads on 6 of 7 federal dimensions, the origin keeps the edge. Merced sits #370 of 387 metros on PlainRelocate livability (bottom third of the corpus). Billings is #188/387 on the same ranking. Composite verdict: Unfavorable. Override it with the dimension table below.
BLS OEWS median salary moves $4,527 higher ($64,222 → $68,749). Labor-market size: 86,460 tracked jobs at origin vs 72,870 at destination.
State retirement friendliness favors staying put: Montana scores 53 (D, #38/51) vs California at 40 (F, #50/51). Full state tax and healthcare sub-scores sit in the retirement desk below.
State retirement friendliness
Primary-state scores from PlainRelocate's retirement registry (tax + healthcare + climate composite). Metro pairs use each metro's primary state abbreviation.
- Income tax
- 62
- Property tax
- 68
- Estate tax
- 100
- Healthcare
- 82
- Income tax
- 70
- Property tax
- 72
- Estate tax
- 100
- Healthcare
- 4
Full retirement ranking · Source composite documented on methodology (Tax Foundation + AARP tax guides + federal healthcare/climate inputs).
Salary Adjustment Calculator
Enter your current salary in Billings to see what you'd need to earn in Merced to maintain the same purchasing power.
Source: BEA Regional Price Parities, HUD Fair Market Rents, BLS OES, FBI UCR, NCES, DOL, EPA; retirement desk: Tax Foundation + AARP tax guides June 2026