Massachusetts 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.
Massachusetts comes out ahead on 4 of them and Montana on 11, 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.
MeasureMassachusettsMontana
Home price$672,867$476,115
Rent paid$1,788$1,074
Cost of living141.295.5
Income$104,828$75,340
Property tax1.00%0.61%
Income tax9.00%5.65%
Sales tax6.25%0.00%
Electric bill$183$114
Temperature50.1°F44.2°F
Snowfall29.5 in54.5 in
Precipitation42.1 in23.9 in
Sunshine3.82 kWh/m²3.96 kWh/m²
Students per teacher12.014.2
Bachelor's or higher48.3%36.3%
Crime rate315424
Commute30.6 min19.5 min
Unemployment4.4%3.3%
Population change+1.7%+5.6%
Wildfire risk51.088.5
Flood risk94.761.0
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.