Moving from Maine to South Dakota
Everyone compares rent and groceries. Almost nobody compares the two numbers that actually decide whether a move works: state income tax and property tax. Here is Maine and South Dakota, side by side.
Moving to South Dakota costs about
-$830/mo
less than Maine each month, renting
Worth knowing
The move pays for itself in about 5 months
Moving costs somewhere around $3,868, and South Dakota runs about $830 a month cheaper. After roughly 5 months you are ahead.
Maine vs South Dakota at a glance
| Maine | South Dakota | |
|---|---|---|
| Median home price | $296,600 | $257,400 |
| Median rent | $1,139/mo | $946/mo |
| State income tax | Up to 7.15% | No state income tax |
| Property tax rate | 1.02% | 1.06% |
| Groceries, gas & goods | 97 | 95 |
| Utilities | 135 | 80 |
Price levels are indexes where 100 is the national average. They cover everyday spending only; housing is the two rows above.
What changes each month
| Monthly | ME | SD | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | |||
| Housing (median rent) | $1,139 | $946 | -$193 |
| Taxes | |||
| State income taxBiggest factor | $354 | $0 | -$354 |
| Sales tax (on everyday spending) | $86 | $59 | -$28 |
| Everyday costs | |||
| Groceries, gas & goods | $1,781 | $1,750 | -$31 |
| Utilities | $552 | $325 | -$227 |
| Total | -$830 | ||
What the move itself costs
$3,300 to $7,000
From a container you load yourself up to full-service movers.
Shipping one car adds about $850 to $1,250, against roughly $600 in fuel and lodging to drive it the 4-day trip yourself.
These are statewide figures. Portland is not Maine-average and Sioux Falls is not South Dakota-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
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.