Boise City → Modesto
Relocation analysis based on 7 federal data sources
Pros of Moving
- + $5K higher median salary
Cons of Moving
- - 6% higher cost of living
- - $103/mo more expensive rent (2BR)
- - Higher violent crime rate
- - Higher student-teacher ratios
- - More expensive childcare
- - More environmental violations
Moving from Boise City to Modesto shifts your BEA Regional Price Parity from 98.4 to 104.1 (100 = US average), so a Boise City salary needs to be multiplied by 1.06 to hold the same purchasing power in Modesto. On rent, HUD Fair Market Rent for a 2-bedroom goes from $1,655/month in Boise City to $1,758/month in Modesto - a higher monthly bill of $103, or $1,236/year. That rent delta alone is often the single biggest line item when relocating.
Wages tell the other half. BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics report a median salary of $67,378 in Boise City versus $72,702 in Modesto - a raw gap of $5,324 higher. The Modesto labor market has 187,990 tracked jobs against 377,880 in Boise City, shaping how easy it is to find a comparable role. Combine that with the cost-of-living shift above and you get the real purchasing-power delta, sometimes a "higher salary" is actually a pay cut once rent and RPP are applied.
Safety, schools, and childcare round out the move. FBI UCR violent crime rates near Boise City and Modesto are 235 and 477 per 100,000 (state-level). NCES student-teacher ratios run 17.1:1 at origin versus 21.5:1 at destination. DOL center-based infant care costs $7,315/year in Boise City versus $17,920/year in Modesto. Our composite verdict - Unfavorable - weighs all seven federal sources; the dimension table below lets you override that with your personal priorities.
Salary Adjustment Calculator
Enter your current salary in Boise City to see what you'd need to earn in Modesto to maintain the same purchasing power.
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Frequently Asked Questions
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Source: BEA Regional Price Parities, HUD Fair Market Rents, BLS OES, FBI UCR, NCES, DOL, EPA June 2026
Data Sources
- Cost of Living: Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) Regional Price Parities
- Rent: HUD Fair Market Rents (FMR)
- Wages: Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OES)
- Crime: FBI Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) - state level
- Schools: National Center for Education Statistics (NCES)
- Childcare: Department of Labor (DOL) - state level
- Environment: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.