State comparison
New Hampshire vs Rhode Island: which state is better to live in?
New Hampshire costs a median household about $1,800 a year less in state and local taxes than Rhode Island, mostly because it has no income tax.
New Hampshire
Low tax burden · COL index 114
Wins 12 categories
Rhode Island
High tax burden · COL index 114
Wins 4 categories
Taxes: New Hampshire vs Rhode Island
New Hampshire has no state income tax. Rhode Island has a graduated income tax topping out at 5.99%, which works out to 3.8% on a median income of $74,580, or $2,797 a year. New Hampshire wins on income tax at 2026 rates.
Property tax is 1.86% of home value a year in New Hampshire and 1.30% in Rhode Island (Tax Foundation, 2023); on each state's median home that is $8,184 against $5,590, so Rhode Island has the lower rate.
New Hampshire has no sales tax; combined state and local sales tax averages 7.00% in Rhode Island.
Add it up for a household earning $74,580 (the 2022 national median) and owning the median home: $8,184 a year in New Hampshire, $9,953 in Rhode Island. New Hampshire is cheaper on total state and local tax.
Housing and cost of living
New Hampshire's cost of living index is 114 and Rhode Island's is 114, where 100 is the national average; the two are level.
The median home costs $440K in New Hampshire and $430K in Rhode Island (Zillow, 2024), a $10K gap in Rhode Island's favor. A two-bedroom rents for about $1,750 a month in New Hampshire and $1,800 in Rhode Island.
Home insurance averages $950 a year in New Hampshire and $1,400 in Rhode Island, so New Hampshire is cheaper to insure.
Safety
Violent crime runs 167 incidents per 100,000 residents in New Hampshire and 237 in Rhode Island (FBI Crime Data Explorer, 2023); New Hampshire is the safer state by that measure, with a rate 42% lower. Property crime is 1,150 per 100,000 in New Hampshire against 1,527 in Rhode Island, again favoring New Hampshire.
Health
Life expectancy is 79.7 years in New Hampshire and 78.1 in Rhode Island (County Health Rankings, 2024), a 1.6-year edge for New Hampshire. The Commonwealth Fund's 2023 scorecard ranks New Hampshire's health system 6th of 50 and Rhode Island's 4th, so Rhode Island scores better on care.
6.3% of New Hampshire residents have no health insurance against 4.7% in Rhode Island, which favors Rhode Island. Both states expanded Medicaid.
Schools
Education Week's 2023 Quality Counts report ranks New Hampshire's K-12 schools 5th in the country and Rhode Island's 13th, 8 places apart in New Hampshire's favor. New Hampshire runs a school-choice voucher program; Rhode Island does not.
Laws and politics
In the 2024 presidential election New Hampshire was a swing state decided by 2 points and Rhode Island went to Harris by 17 points.
New Hampshire has permitless carry and a Giffords gun-law grade of F; Rhode Island has may-issue carry permits and a grade of B, so Rhode Island regulates guns more tightly and New Hampshire is the friendlier state for gun owners.
Abortion is legal with limits in New Hampshire and protected by state law in Rhode Island, and marijuana is legal for adults in both as of 2026. The minimum wage is $7.25 an hour in New Hampshire and $14.00 in Rhode Island.
Climate and risk
Natural disaster risk is low in New Hampshire (blizzard, flood) and moderate in Rhode Island (hurricane, nor-easter, flood), so New Hampshire is the lower-risk state. Annual average air quality index is 27 in New Hampshire and 32 in Rhode Island (under 50 is good), favoring New Hampshire.
Tax figures use a household earning the national median income and owning each state's median home, at tax year 2026 rates, last checked against state sources on 2026-09-14. The table below has every number.
Taxes
Housing & Cost of Living
Crime & Safety
Healthcare
Education
Childcare
Utilities & Daily Costs
Social Policy
Category wins
12
New Hampshire
4
Rhode Island
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Score For My Profile →Questions people ask
Is New Hampshire or Rhode Island better to live in?
New Hampshire wins more of the measures that decide a move. New Hampshire on taxes ($8,184 a year for a median household against $9,953); New Hampshire on safety (167 violent crimes per 100,000 against 237); New Hampshire on schools (ranked 5th against 13th).
Which is cheaper, New Hampshire or Rhode Island?
Day-to-day costs are level: both states sit at a cost of living index of 114. The median home is $440K in New Hampshire and $430K in Rhode Island (2024). On state and local taxes New Hampshire saves a median household about $1,800 a year.
Does New Hampshire or Rhode Island have lower taxes?
New Hampshire. A household earning $74,580 pays about $8,184 a year in New Hampshire ($0 income tax, $8,184 property tax on the median home and $0 in sales tax) and $9,953 in Rhode Island ($2,797 income tax, $5,590 property tax on the median home and $1,566 in sales tax), at 2026 rates.
Which is safer, New Hampshire or Rhode Island?
New Hampshire, on the FBI's 2023 figures. Violent crime is 167 per 100,000 residents in New Hampshire and 237 in Rhode Island; property crime is 1,150 against 1,527.
Which has better schools, New Hampshire or Rhode Island?
New Hampshire. Education Week's 2023 Quality Counts report ranks New Hampshire 5th of 50 for K-12 and Rhode Island 13th. New Hampshire also offers school-choice vouchers.
Is New Hampshire or Rhode Island better for retirees?
New Hampshire is friendlier to retirees on paper. New Hampshire does not tax Social Security, exempts pensions and has no estate or inheritance tax; Rhode Island taxes Social Security, partly exempts pensions and has an estate tax. Property tax on a median home is $8,184 a year in New Hampshire and $5,590 in Rhode Island.