Cost of living in Oregon

Rent, income, home value and property tax for Oregon, home to 4.25M people, then the same for each of its 36 counties. Every figure is the published one, with its source named.

Oregon at a glance

Median rent
$1,525
Census ACS, B25064, monthly
Median household income
$83,011
Census ACS, B19013, yearly
Median home value
$477,600
Census ACS, B25077
Median property tax bill
$3,876
Census ACS, B25103, yearly, current owners
Mean commute
23 min
Census ACS, DP03, one way
Unemployment
5.4%
Census ACS, DP03

Oregon's own published state rows, never an average of its counties. Prices overall run 3% above the national average (BEA regional price parity, 2024).

Census ACS 2024 five-year estimates, checked November 2026.

The three most populous counties in Oregon

These are the most populous places in Oregon, not a match to you. Set what matters to you on Find your fit and this becomes your three closest matches here. Made-up answers work too. This is a tool, not a survey.

  • Multnomah County

    Population
    801K
    Rent
    $1,646
    Household income
    $88,766
    Prop. tax (yearly)
    $5,301
    Plan
  • Washington County

    Population
    604K
    Rent
    $1,849
    Household income
    $107,772
    Prop. tax (yearly)
    $4,929
    Plan
  • Clackamas County

    Population
    424K
    Rent
    $1,758
    Household income
    $103,517
    Prop. tax (yearly)
    $5,171
    Plan

Oregon, worth the trip

Admitted to the Union on February 14, 1859, as the 33rd state. The Pacific Fur Company set up a trading post at Astoria in 1811, followed by the Hudson's Bay Company at Fort Vancouver in 1824. Migration over the Oregon Trail began in the early 1840s.

History: Encyclopaedia Britannica. Each place links to the page of the agency that looks after it.

Property tax in Oregon

Current owners in Oregon pay a median 0.81% of home value a year in property tax. Example: $3,876 a year, the median bill. By county, the median bill runs from $1,563 in Lake County to $5,301 in Multnomah County. These are bills that current owners pay, as the Census measures them. Each county's own figure is in the table below.

In Oregon Measure 50 limits the maximum assessed value to 3% growth a year, and a sale does not change it. A buyer inherits the seller's capped value, so these owners' figures are a fair guide for a buyer too.

Health in Oregon

Life expectancy
78.0 yrs
County Health Rankings, from CDC NCHS vital statistics
No health insurance
7.4%
County Health Rankings, from Census SAHIE, people under 65
Poor or fair health
17.2%
County Health Rankings, from CDC BRFSS. Modeled, not counted
Injury deaths per 100K people
88
County Health Rankings, from CDC NCHS, counted deaths

Each is the figure County Health Rankings publishes for Oregon as a whole, never an average of its counties. Each county's own health readings are on its page.

Natural hazards in Oregon

Expected yearly loss, statewide
$2.5B
All natural hazards, an average year. Larger states lose more
Building loss rate
$1.94
Per $1,000 of building value, each year. Fair to compare between states
Costliest hazard
Earthquake
$1.2B of the expected yearly loss, the largest share of any hazard FEMA assesses
Air quality
—
The EPA publishes air quality by county and metro area, never by state. It is on each county's page

FEMA publishes a risk score for counties and none for states, so none is shown here. Each county's score is on its own page.

New homes permitted in Oregon

Permitted in 2025

14,839homes

Per 1,000 residents

3.5

Single-family · larger buildings

9,215 · 5,624

  1. 19K2020
  2. 22K2021
  3. 20K2022
  4. 18K2023
  5. 15K2024
  6. 15K2025

Oregon approved permits for 14,839 new homes in 2025. That is about 3.5 homes for every 1,000 people. 9,215 were single-family houses, and 5,624 were in buildings with two or more homes. From 2020 to 2025 the yearly count stayed between 14,621 and 21,916.

29th of the 50 states and DC by homes permitted per 1,000 residents in 2025.

A permit lets a home be built. It does not mean the home is finished. Some offices did not report, so part of this figure is a Census estimate. The offices that did report account for 14,003. Source: US Census Building Permits Survey, annual 2025 data.

Side by side

Multnomah County, OR is the largest county here. Set it beside another place, reading by reading.

The largest counties in Oregon

By population, from the Census release named below. Each opens its own page.

  1. 1Multnomah County801K
  2. 2Washington County604K
  3. 3Clackamas County424K
  4. 4Lane County384K
  5. 5Marion County349K
  6. 6Jackson County223K
  7. 7Deschutes County206K
  8. 8Linn County131K
  9. 9Douglas County112K
  10. 10Yamhill County109K

All 36 counties in Oregon

Each has its published readings on its own page. Press a column to sort by it. Pick one, or open the map to see them shaded side by side.

Baker County$865$2,239
Benton County$1,410$4,884
Clackamas County$1,758$5,171
Clatsop County$1,180$3,236
Columbia County$1,373$3,137
Coos County$1,042$2,284
Crook County$1,283$2,972
Curry County$1,241$1,841
Deschutes County$1,787$3,807
Douglas County$1,055$1,895
Gilliam County$1,125—
Grant County$789$1,674
Harney County$684$1,943
Hood River County$1,417$3,515
Jackson County$1,358$3,174
Jefferson County$941$2,591
Josephine County$1,194$2,086
Klamath County$991$1,752
Lake County$878$1,563
Lane County$1,355$3,536
Lincoln County$1,201$3,322
Linn County$1,320$3,261
Malheur County$821$1,860
Marion County$1,414$3,490
Morrow County$995$1,946
Multnomah County$1,646$5,301
Polk County$1,299$3,634
Sherman County$1,032$1,588
Tillamook County$1,246$2,582
Umatilla County$997$2,557
Union County$982$2,446
Wallowa County$981$2,270
Wasco County$1,008$2,828
Washington County$1,849$4,929
Wheeler County$870$1,893
Yamhill County$1,480$3,425

Household income, home value and population are on each county's own page, and in this table on a wider screen.

Where these numbers come from

Each reading is the published figure, not an estimate. A dash means the source did not publish one, or published one too uncertain to print.

  • State figures: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 20245-year estimates, the state's own row (tables B25064, B19013, B25077, B25103, B01003, DP03).
  • County figures: the same survey, each county's own row, as on every county page.
  • Price level: Bureau of Economic Analysis, regional price parities, 2024, all items, state-level.
  • Health: County Health Rankings & Roadmaps 2025, University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute, the state's own row. Poor or fair health is a modeled estimate from CDC survey data. The other three are counted or calculated.
  • Natural hazards: FEMA National Risk Index, December 2025, state table, expected annual loss. This product uses FEMA data but is not endorsed by FEMA.
  • Air quality has no state figure: the EPA publishes it by county and metro area only.
  • Photographs: Wikimedia Commons and the county photo feed, each credited to its photographer under its own licence, beneath the picture.

What to do with these numbers

Every number here is public. The site adds your side of it: Oregon next to your own state, by what you value.

  • See Oregon beside your own state

    Find your fit puts it next to where you live and the states next door, by what matters to you. Made-up answers are fine, since this is a tool, not a survey. No account needed.

  • Pick a county here and make it your target

    The three counties above each carry Set as target. From there the Journey lays out the runway and the steps. An account keeps it private and yours across devices.