What salary do you need to live in Portland, ME?

Rent, home values and prices in Portland

Renters in Portland pay a median $1,608 a month for two bedrooms. Size matters: one bedroom is $1,211, three bedrooms $1,859, so going from the smallest to the largest of the three adds $7,776 a year.

On the ownership side, the typical owner-occupied home is valued at $420,000. That works out to 4.6× the local median household income of $92,175, a mid-range ratio.

The Regional Price Parity, BEA's index of local prices with the US at 100, is 101.9 here. Above 100 means a paycheck stretches less: $100,000 in Portland has the buying power of roughly $98,176 at national average prices.

The salary lines for a two-bedroom in Portland

The salary lines for a two-bedroom household land at $59,000 for Tight, $119,000 for Okay and $239,000 for Comfortable. The gap between the Okay and Comfortable lines alone is $120,000, which says how much extra income it takes to make housing feel roomy here rather than merely workable.

The Royal grade is within reach at $758,000 a year, where both rent and the median home price look small next to income.

Each figure is the lowest income, to the next $1,000, at which the calculator itself would show that grade for a two-bedroom in Portland.

Four salaries, three home sizes in Portland

At $75,000 home size barely changes the picture: one, two and three bedrooms all grade Tight, with scores from 30 to 36.

In Portland the table's top salary of $150,000 stops at Okay (52) for two bedrooms; Comfortable starts higher, at $239,000.

Portland compared with every US metro

Ranked against all 387 metros, Portland sits 58th on overall price level and 50th on the two-bedroom rent median, counting from the most expensive. Its median home value ranks 68th.

Stockton-Lodi, CA ($1,609) and Lexington Park, MD ($1,602) bracket Portland on two-bedroom rent.

Comparing Portland with Maine

Compared with Maine as a whole, two-bedroom rent in Portland is 31% higher ($1,608 vs. $1,224) and the median home is 42% higher ($420,000 vs. $296,600).

On statewide medians, a two-bedroom budget reaches Comfortable at $158,000 — below Portland's $239,000 line.

Maine has only 2 other metros in the data, Bangor, ME and Lewiston-Auburn, ME, so the closest match elsewhere, Cape Coral-Fort Myers, FL, is included too.

Does the typical Portland income clear the bar?

What about a typical local household? Census puts median household income here at $92,175, which grades Tight (38) for a two-bedroom at the median rent. Put differently, Portland's typical household is $146,825 below the $239,000 it takes to read Comfortable on two bedrooms. For Maine as a whole, the median household income of $74,733 scores 44 against statewide rents. Since a household can have two or more earners, compare it with a combined income rather than one paycheck.

All figures are pre-tax estimates from public data, not financial advice.