Salem vs Eugene leftover
Moving to Eugene costs you $343 a month
$1,251/mo leftover in Eugene vs $1,594 in Salem after tax and rent ($343 less). −$4,116 a year for the same registered nurse, the same household size, and the same number of bedrooms. Not a cost-of-living index.
Salem leftover
$1,594
a month after tax and rent
Eugene leftover
$1,251
−$343 vs Salem
Compare Salem to another metro
Same paycheck. Try a different city next to Salem.
Monthly gap
Salem → Eugene
$343
less / month in Salem
$1,251 in Eugene · $1,594 in Salem · 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, 331 households moved Salem → Eugene (avg AGI $48,293). 340 went the other way. The whole move →
−$343 / mo
| Per month | Salem | Eugene | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gross pay | $6,958 | $6,523 | −$436 |
| Income and payroll tax | $1,928 | $1,761 | −$167 |
| Take-home pay | $5,030 | $4,762 | −$268 |
| Rent | $1,270 | $1,403 | +$133 |
| Getting around | $593 | $535 | −$58 |
| Groceries | $434 | $434 | $0 |
| Healthcare | $488 | $488 | $0 |
| Utilities | $271 | $271 | $0 |
| Everything else | $380 | $380 | $0 |
| Left over | $1,594 | $1,251 | −$343 |
To break even in Eugene, you'd need to earn
$85,000
Household gross, versus $83,500 today. That's the salary that leaves you exactly as much at the end of the month as Salem does now.
The tax difference alone
+$458
A year, in state and local income tax. Effective rates: 27.7% in Salem, 27.0% in Eugene.
More about Eugene
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.
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.
The reverse move
Same two cities, but starting from Eugene on Eugene wages.
Eugene → Salem →Questions
Is the cost of living lower in Eugene than Salem?
A one-bedroom is about $1,270 in Salem versus $1,403 in Eugene. On a one-adult, one-bedroom household, leftover is about $343 a month lower in Eugene. Change the job or household on the comparison to see your number.
Does Eugene have state income tax?
Eugene is in Oregon, which taxes wage income.
What changes if you move from Salem to Eugene?
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 Salem and Eugene 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.