Maineincome tax up to 7.15%, 19th highest property tax, median home $360K

Worth knowing before you move to Maine

Maine has the oldest population of any state, a graduated income tax that reaches 7.15% at moderate incomes, and an estate tax with a $7 million exemption. It does not tax Social Security and exempts a portion of pension income. Coastal property from Portland to Bar Harbor carries prices closer to Massachusetts than to the inland counties, where homes remain inexpensive.

What Maine taxes, and what it doesn't

Maine levies a graduated income tax that tops out at 7.15%. A household earning $75,000 pays an effective 6.5%, about $4,843 a year; at $150,000 the effective rate is 6.8%. Among the 41 states that tax income, Maine has the 2nd highest effective rate at $100,000 of income.

Property tax runs 1.04% of home value a year, roughly $3,744 on the state's median home of $360K. The national effective rate is about 1.10%, and Maine has the 19th highest rate of the 50 states.

Combined state and local sales tax averages 5.50%, the 9th lowest in the country (the state portion is 5.5%).

For retirees: Social Security benefits are not taxed, pension income is partly exempt, and an estate tax applies above $6.8 million.

Capital gains are taxed as ordinary income.

Housing and the cost of living in Maine

Maine's cost of living index is 107, where 100 is the national average; that is the 15th most expensive of the 50 states.

The median home costs $360K, 19% above the national figure and the 21st highest among the states. A two-bedroom rents for about $1,500 a month.

Carrying costs matter as much as the price: home insurance averages $900 a year, flood coverage adds about $600 where it is needed, car insurance runs $980.

Budget $175 a month for electricity and gas, $560 a month in groceries for two, $1,350 a month for full-time infant care.

Safety, health and schools

Violent crime is 109 incidents per 100,000 residents in the FBI's 2023 Crime Data Explorer figures, below the median state (387); Maine is the safest of the 50 by that measure. Property crime is 1,187 per 100,000.

Life expectancy is 77.8 years (County Health Rankings 2024). 6.9% of residents have no health insurance, and the state has expanded Medicaid. The Commonwealth Fund's 2023 scorecard ranks Maine's health system 7th of 50.

Education Week's 2023 Quality Counts report ranks K-12 schools 14th in the country, and the state runs a school-choice voucher program.

Politics, guns and social policy

Politically, Maine is a competitive state that went to Harris by 6 points in 2024.

On guns, no permit is required to carry a concealed handgun, and Giffords grades the state's gun laws B-.

Abortion is protected by state law. Marijuana is legal for adults. Maine is not a right-to-work state, and the minimum wage is $14.15 an hour.

Climate, risk and getting around

Natural disaster risk is low. The main hazards are blizzard, flood. Annual average air quality index is 26 (under 50 is good).

Maine has no top-25 hub airport, with about 35 nonstop destinations from its busiest airport.