Skip to content
CityLedger

Manchester vs Worcester

Metro-area medians — Manchester-Nashua, NH Metro Area vs Worcester, MA Metro Area — not the cities proper.

Manchester comes out ahead, winning 6 of the 8 clearly-decided measures.

Worcester is about 3% cheaper to live in, while Manchester households earn about 10% more. Adjusted for local prices, a typical paycheck stretches further in Manchester.

For your salary & household

Enter your pay and household size to see what it's really worth here — the numbers update live and the link stays shareable.

Manchester, NH
$61,314
take-home / yr · 18% to tax
$58,031
real value after local prices
Worcester, MA
$57,564
take-home / yr · 23% to tax
$56,147
real value after local prices

On $75,000 for just you, Manchester leaves you about $1,884/yr better off after tax and local prices.

Take-home estimates a single filer taking the standard deduction (2025 federal brackets, FICA, and state income tax) and isn't tax advice. “Real value” rebases take-home to average U.S. prices using the BEA cost-of-living index; the per-person figure uses the OECD square-root equivalence scale.

Measure
Manchester
Worcester
Livability (CityLedger)
80/100
64/100
Cost of living (price level, US = 100)
105.7
102.5
Cost-adjusted income (pay's real value)
$100,337
$94,225
Median household income
$106,013
$96,602
Median rent
$1,714/mo
$1,563/mo
Median home value
$476,000
$465,500
Unemployment
2.4%
4.5%
Bachelor's degree or higher
42.6%
40.2%
Average commute
28.5 min
29.8 min
Air quality (median AQI)
37
37
Avg temperature
50°F
48°F

Choose Manchester for

  • + Livability (CityLedger)
  • + Cost-adjusted income (pay's real value)
  • + Median household income
  • + Unemployment
  • + Bachelor's degree or higher
  • + Average commute
Full Manchester profile →

Choose Worcester for

  • + Cost of living (price level, US = 100)
  • + Median rent
Full Worcester profile →

Manchester vs Worcester — frequently asked

Is Manchester cheaper than Worcester?
Worcester is cheaper: its overall cost of living runs about 3% below Manchester's (BEA Regional Price Parities).
Which has higher household income, Manchester or Worcester?
Manchester has the higher median household income — $106,013 versus $96,602 (U.S. Census Bureau, ACS), about 10% more.
Does a paycheck go further in Manchester or Worcester?
A paycheck stretches further in Manchester. Adjusted for local prices, the median income is worth $100,337 there versus $94,225 in Worcester.
Which has cheaper rent, Manchester or Worcester?
Worcester has cheaper rent — a median of $1,563/mo versus $1,714/mo (U.S. Census Bureau, ACS).