Moving from Iowa to Maine
Iowa to Maine is a move of about 1,536 miles. Median rent is $1,139 a month in Maine and $972 in Iowa, and the median home is $296,600 against $208,000. State income tax is up to 7.15% in Maine and a flat 3.80% in Iowa. Property tax runs 1.02% of home value in Maine and 1.39% in Iowa.
Moving to Maine costs about
$590/mo
more than Iowa each month, renting on a $80,000 household income
Not your income? Run it on your own numbers
Worth knowing
Homes cost 1.4x more in Maine, but the tax rate is lower
Maine taxes property at 1.02% against 1.39% in Iowa. Despite the far higher prices, the yearly bill only rises to about $3,025 from $2,891.
Iowa vs Maine at a glance
| Iowa | Maine | |
|---|---|---|
| Median home value | $208,000 | $296,600 |
| Median rent | $972/mo | $1,139/mo |
| State income tax | Flat 3.80% | Up to 7.15% |
| Property tax rate | 1.39% | 1.02% |
| Groceries, gas & goods | 94 | 97 |
| Utilities | 83 | 135 |
Price levels are indexes where 100 is the national average. They cover everyday spending only; housing is the two rows above.
Monthly cost of living: Iowa vs Maine
| Monthly | IA | ME | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | |||
| Housing (median rent) | $972 | $1,139 | +$167 |
| Taxes | |||
| State income tax | $202 | $354 | +$152 |
| Local income tax (state average) | $7 | None | -$7 |
| Sales tax (on everyday spending) | $84 | $86 | +$2 |
| Everyday costs | |||
| Groceries, gas & goods | $1,718 | $1,781 | +$63 |
| UtilitiesBiggest factor | $340 | $552 | +$212 |
| Total | +$589 | ||
Cost to move from Iowa to Maine
$2,900 to $6,300
From a container you load yourself up to full-service movers.
Shipping one car adds about $700 to $1,000, against roughly $450 in fuel and lodging to drive it the 3-day trip yourself.
These are statewide figures. Des Moines is not Iowa-average and Portland is not Maine-average, so a specific city can look nothing like its state. Compare metro areas instead to narrow it to 387 real places, including which side of a state line you would live on.
Run this with your own numbers
What jobs pay in Maine, after the cost of living
Estimates only, not advice. Housing and income figures come from the U.S. Census Bureau's American Community Survey (2024); price levels from the Bureau of Economic Analysis (2024); tax rates are for the 2026 tax year, compiled from state revenue departments and the Tax Foundation. Moving costs are modelled from published ranges rather than quoted. Every figure is a statewide median or average and will not match any particular household.