Eugene vs Salem leftover
You'd keep $344 more a month in Salem
$1,607/mo leftover in Salem vs $1,263 in Eugene after tax and rent ($344 more). +$4,128 a year for the same registered nurse, the same household size, and the same number of bedrooms. Not a cost-of-living index.
Eugene leftover
$1,263
a month after tax and rent
Salem leftover
$1,607
+$344 vs Eugene
Compare Eugene to another metro
Same paycheck. Try a different city next to Eugene.
Monthly gap
Eugene → Salem
$344
more / month in Salem
$1,607 in Salem · $1,263 in Eugene · One adult, renting a 1-bedroom
Home
Only when you tap. We match the nearest metro and don't keep the coordinates.
Destination
In 2022-2023, 340 households moved Eugene → Salem (avg AGI $49,212). 331 went the other way. The whole move →
+$344 / mo
| Per month | Eugene | Salem | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gross pay | $6,542 | $6,979 | +$437 |
| Income and payroll tax | $1,768 | $1,936 | +$168 |
| Take-home pay | $4,774 | $5,043 | +$269 |
| Rent | $1,403 | $1,270 | −$133 |
| Getting around | $535 | $593 | +$58 |
| Groceries | $434 | $434 | $0 |
| Healthcare | $488 | $488 | $0 |
| Utilities | $271 | $271 | $0 |
| Everything else | $380 | $380 | $0 |
| Left over | $1,263 | $1,607 | +$344 |
To break even in Salem, you'd need to earn
$77,000
Household gross, versus $78,500 today. That's the salary that leaves you exactly as much at the end of the month as Eugene does now.
The tax difference alone
−$459
A year, in state and local income tax. Effective rates: 27.0% in Eugene, 27.7% in Salem.
More about Salem
Eugene, OR in full
State income tax topping out at 9.9%, a median 2-bedroom asking rent of $1,670 and 157 sunny days; commutes average 20 minutes.
Salem, OR in full
State income tax topping out at 9.9%, a median 2-bedroom asking rent of $1,512 and 158 sunny days; commutes average 25 minutes.
The reverse move
Same two cities, but starting from Salem on Salem wages.
Salem → Eugene →Questions
Is the cost of living lower in Salem than Eugene?
A one-bedroom is about $1,403 in Eugene versus $1,270 in Salem. On a one-adult, one-bedroom household, leftover is about $344 a month higher in Salem. Change the job or household on the comparison to see your number.
Does Salem have state income tax?
Salem is in Oregon, which taxes wage income.
What changes if you move from Eugene to Salem?
Take-home pay is recalculated under Oregon tax, rent is priced at the same bedroom count, and leftover is the gap. The from-to page also lists IRS households that already made the move, when that data exists.
Leftover is take-home after federal, state and city wage tax, minus asking rent at the bedroom count you set, minus a modelled month of groceries, utilities, healthcare, transport and childcare. It is not a cost-of-living index and not a moving quote. The dollar gap between Eugene and Salem moves when you change the job, remote versus local pay, or bedrooms. How the math works · Leftover vs a COL index · Why a cheaper COL% can still lose leftover.
Rent is Zillow's asking rent for each metro; taxes and living costs are modelled. An estimate, not a quote or tax advice. How this is calculated.