Maine vs Montana
Twenty measures that tend to decide a move, side by side. Every figure is the same one the map shows, from the same source.
Maine comes out ahead on 6 of them and Montana on 9, but that tally is not a recommendation: it weighs a difference in class size the same as a difference in house price. Read the rows that matter to you.
MeasureMaineMontana
Home price$424,107$476,115
Rent paid$1,169$1,074
Cost of living11395.5
Income$76,442$75,340
Property tax0.98%0.61%
Income tax7.15%5.65%
Sales tax5.50%0.00%
Electric bill$155$114
Temperature44.8°F44.2°F
Snowfall66.8 in54.5 in
Precipitation39.1 in23.9 in
Sunshine3.72 kWh/m²3.96 kWh/m²
Students per teacher11.514.2
Bachelor's or higher37.1%36.3%
Crime rate100424
Commute25.6 min19.5 min
Unemployment3.1%3.3%
Population change+3.8%+5.6%
Wildfire risk32.388.5
Flood risk67.161.0
Bold marks the better figure where a measure has a better direction. Weather, snowfall and rainfall are shown plain, because warmer is not better — it is a preference.