($1,550) Movers From Milwaukee, WI to Portland, ME

What to know before moving from Milwaukee to Portland

Moving from Milwaukee to Portland comes with exciting new opportunities — but also higher living costs. Since Portland is generally more expensive than Milwaukee, it’s important to plan ahead and budget carefully for the change.

Check out how the two cities compare so you know what to expect before you relocate:

• Rent prices in Portland are 59% higher than in Milwaukee, which means you’ll have less money in your pocket each month.
• In terms of homeownership, you’ll be able to get more for your money in Milwaukee.
  Home prices in Portland are 170.1% higher than in Milwaukee.
• Income in Portland is 29.0% higher than in Milwaukee, so you could earn more for doing the same job. The top employers in Portland include TD Banknorth Inc, Maine Medical Center, and Unum Life Insurance Company of America.
• Be sure to budget for higher bills in Portland, since the cost of living for a single person in Portland is 23.2% higher than in Milwaukee. This includes routine expenses like utilities, groceries, clothing, and transportation.
• If you’re moving your family to Portland, keep in mind that your living expenses could increase. The cost of living for a family in Portland is 22.1% higher than in Milwaukee.
• The unemployment rate in Portland is 29.73% lower than in Milwaukee.
• You’ll spend more on retail and restaurants in Portland, since the city’s sales taxes in Portland are 12.24% higher than in Milwaukee.
• One perk of moving to Portland is paying less in state income taxes, which are 24.18% lower than in Milwaukee.

To put this in perspective, you would need around $3,695.85 in Portland to maintain the same standard of life that you can have with $3,000.00 in Milwaukee.

How life is different in Milwaukee vs. Portland

• Portland might offer you a slower pace of life, since the population is about 88% less than Milwaukee.
• Getting around Portland without a car might be more difficult than in Milwaukee. Portland has a public transportation score of 6 out of 10, whereas Milwaukee is ranked 8. Ratings are based on a city’s transit connectivity, service frequency, and accessibility to key destinations like jobs and grocery stores.
• You’ll find Portland to be about as walkable as Milwaukee. The two cities have similar walkability scores of 62 and 62 respectively out of 100 in terms of how close housing is to businesses, recreational facilities, and jobs.
• If cycling is your thing, Portland is considered more bike-friendly than Milwaukee in terms of designated lanes and connectivity and how many residents opt to commute on two wheels rather than by car. Portland has a bike-friendliness score of 68 out of 100, while Milwaukee is rated as 58 out of 100.
• Portland has a lower crime rate than Milwaukee based on scores of 32.16 and Milwaukee's 66.76, respectively. The crime index shows how safe a city is perceived to be. So, a lower score generally means less crime.
• You might find more confidence in your overall safety in Portland than in Milwaukee, based on Portland’s safety index of 67.84 versus 33.24 for Milwaukee. With this index, higher scores indicate more safety, particularly around how comfortable residents feel walking alone during the day and at night.
• The air quality in Portland and Milwaukee is generally the same (Good). Cities with good to moderate ratings have clean or acceptable air quality, with the possibility of small pollutants affecting people with certain health conditions like asthma. Anything beyond the moderate rate means increased impact on residents.