Moving to Maine
New residents have 30 days to get a Maine driver license and must register a car within 30 days. Prices are 3.0% below the U.S. average, and a single filer earning $100,000 pays about $5,129 in Maine income tax. 20,295 households moved here from other states in 2022–2023, most often from Massachusetts and New Hampshire.
New resident checklist for Maine
Driver license
Get a Maine license within 30 days of moving. Bring proof of identity, your Social Security number and two proofs of your Maine address.
Vehicle title and registration
Convert registration and title within 30 days of establishing residency. Pay municipal excise tax at your town office first, then register. Maine requires an annual state safety inspection. Switch your auto insurance to a Maine policy.
Taxes or fees on a car you bring: 5.5% use tax generally applies, but a vehicle bought and used outside Maine while you were a bona fide resident of another state is exempt. Show the out-of-state registration and use tax certificate. If the vehicle was not registered elsewhere, you must document more than 12 months of use outside Maine.
Annual registration: $35 state registration fee plus annual municipal excise tax based on MSRP and age: $24 per $1,000 in year 1, $17.50 in year 2, $13.50 in year 3, $10 in year 4, $6.50 in year 5, then $4 per $1,000.
Extra yearly fee for an electric vehicle: none.
Establishing residency
Once you establish residency in Maine, the 30-day license and registration clocks start. Residency also decides where you pay income tax in the year you move; see taxes the year you move.
Your first-month checklist in Maine
- Register to vote at your new address.
- Update your address with the IRS (Form 8822), your employer and your bank.
- Make sure your employer withholds Maine income tax from your move date.
- Set up utilities and get renters or homeowners insurance. Owners with a mortgage here paid a median $1,081 a year for homeowners insurance in 2024 (Census ACS); premiums have risen in most states since, so get quotes.
- Keep your lease or closing papers and your license date as proof of when you became a resident.
Still planning the move itself? The moving out of state checklist covers the weeks before you go, and the moving timeline turns your move date into dated deadlines. Our guide to moving with pets covers vet records, travel and local pet rules. Shipping a car? See shipping a car to another state, or take the Where should I move? quiz.
Official site: maine.gov. Sources: maine.gov (2), maine.gov (3), legislature.maine.gov, maine.gov (4), maine.gov (5), maine.gov (6). Reviewed 2026-09-25. Rules and fees change; confirm with the Maine motor vehicle agency before you go.
Compare your move to Maine
Pick the state you're leaving and your salary to see your take-home pay, rent and the salary that keeps your buying power the same in Maine.
Equal salary in ME: $95,600
To keep the same lifestyle, you need about $95,600 in Maine to match $105,000 in Massachusetts ($9,400 less), after 2026 taxes and local prices.
Single filer, W-2 salary, standard deduction.
These changes cover taxes, housing and electricity. Food, transport, healthcare, other spending and one-time moving costs are excluded. They are not total savings. State medians may differ from your neighborhood and current quotes.
| Tax on $105,000 | Massachusetts | Maine |
|---|---|---|
| Federal income tax | $14,270 | $14,270 |
| Social Security + Medicare | $8,033 | $8,033 |
| State income tax | $5,030 | $5,527 |
| State payroll programs (UI, disability, paid leave, transit) | $483 | $525 |
| Take-home pay | $77,185 | $76,645 |
Full reports for the most common moves to Maine: Massachusetts to Maine, New Hampshire to Maine, Florida to Maine, New York to Maine, California to Maine and Connecticut to Maine.
Living in Maine: costs, taxes and risk
Of the 51 (the 50 states and D.C.), Maine is in the best 10 for car insurance, homeowners insurance and natural hazard risk, and in the worst 10 for state income tax and health premiums.
- Median rent
- $1,210/mo U.S. $1,487
- Cost to own the median home
- $2,159/mo U.S. $2,298
- Take-home on $100,000
- $73,551 $1,527 less than in the median state
- Property tax (effective)
- 0.91% median $3,103/yr
- FEMA risk score
- 67.8 of 100 Above average for U.S. counties
- Moved in from other states
- 20,295 households, IRS 2022–2023
Pros and cons of living in Maine
How Maine ranks among all 51 (the 50 states and D.C.) on 11 measures of costs, taxes, risk and income. Top 10 means among the 10 best for someone moving in, Bottom 10 among the 10 worst.
Where Maine ranks best
- Top 5 Lowest car insurance costs: $856 a year per car on average (NAIC 2023), 2nd lowest of 51.
- Top 5 Lowest homeowners insurance: $1,081 a year at the median for homes with a mortgage (Census ACS 2024), 4th lowest of 51.
- Top 10 Lowest natural hazard risk: FEMA risk score 67.8 of 100, 10th lowest of 51.
Where Maine ranks worst
- Bottom 10 Highest state income tax: $5,129 on a $100,000 salary, 7th highest of 51.
- Bottom 10 Highest Marketplace health premiums: $709 a month for a benchmark plan at age 40, before subsidies (KFF 2026), 10th highest of 51.
Measures: state income tax, overall prices, rent, cost to own a home, property tax rate, homeowners insurance, electric bills, car insurance, health premiums, natural hazard risk, household income. State income tax is for a single filer earning $100,000 under 2026 rules, including the average county income tax in Indiana and Maryland. Ties share a rank.
Where new Maine residents come from
In the latest IRS migration data (2022–2023), 20,295 households filed their taxes in Maine after filing in another state the year before. Massachusetts sent the most, 3,330 households (16% of the total). Maine gained a net 3,671 households from other states that year.
Five-year trend
Moves to Maine from other states peaked in 2020–21 at 22,205 households, then fell 9% to 20,295 in 2022–23, up 19% from 2018–19. Maine gained households from other states on net in all five years.
IRS SOI state-to-state migration files, tax years 2018–19 to 2022–23. Net gain or loss by year: 2018–19 +2,758, 2019–20 +6,336, 2020–21 +7,391, 2021–22 +5,122, 2022–23 +3,671.
Cost of living in Maine vs the U.S.
Overall prices in Maine are 3.0% below the U.S. average, 26th cheapest of 51. The widest gap is in utilities (135.2), 35% above the U.S. level.
The vertical line marks the U.S. average (100). BEA Regional Price Parities 2024.
- Average electric bill
- $134/mo U.S. $142
- Car insurance, per car
- $856/yr U.S. $1,282
- Health plan, age 40
- $709/mo U.S. $625
EIA 2024 average residential bills, NAIC 2023 average auto insurance expenditure, KFF 2026 benchmark silver Marketplace premium before subsidies.
Taxes in Maine: take-home pay at three incomes
Maine taxes wages. Workers also pay about $500 a year in state payroll programs at $100,000, which the take-home figures include. Here is what a single filer keeps after 2026 federal and state taxes, compared with the middle of all 51.
| Salary | ME income tax | Take-home | vs. median state |
|---|---|---|---|
| $50,000 | $1,697 | $40,408 | -$370 |
| $100,000 | $5,129 | $73,551 | -$1,527 |
| $150,000 | $9,418 | $103,623 | -$3,964 |
Single filer, 2026 tax rules, standard deduction. Take-home is after federal income tax, Social Security, Medicare and Maine income and payroll taxes. "vs. median state" is the difference from the median take-home of all 51 at the same salary. For married filing jointly, change the filing status in the calculator above.
The statewide sales tax rate is 5.5% before any local sales taxes. Homeowners pay a median $3,103 a year in property tax, 0.91% of the median home value (property tax by county). Retiring? See how Maine taxes Social Security and pensions. Moving mid-year? Read about taxes the year you move.
Cities in Maine: where a paycheck goes furthest
The Portland, ME metro area is the only one of the 149 U.S. metro areas we cover that is centered in Maine. About $82,800 there buys what $75,000 buys in an average-priced area with no state income tax.
| Metro area | Salary to match $75k | Price level | Median rent | Median home |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Portland, ME | $82,800 | 101.9 | $1,590 | $474,200 |
Salary to match $75k: the pay that leaves the same after-tax, price-adjusted income as $75,000 in an area at U.S. average prices with no state income tax, single filer, including the principal city's own income tax where it has one. BEA 2024 price levels (U.S. = 100) and Census ACS 2024 rent and home values for each metro area.
Housing and home insurance in Maine
| Measure | Maine | U.S. |
|---|---|---|
| Median rent (monthly) | $1,210 | $1,487 |
| Median home value | $341,900 | $360,600 |
| Monthly cost to own the median home (20% down) | $2,159 | $2,298 |
| Income needed to buy the median home | $92,538 | $98,486 |
| Median property tax (yearly) | $3,103 | $3,211 |
| Homeowners insurance (yearly median, homes with a mortgage) | $1,081 | $1,450 |
Census ACS 2024 rent, home value and property tax, and ACS 2024 homeowners insurance. Cost to own: principal and interest at the Freddie Mac 30-year average (6.95%) with 20% down, plus the median property tax and the median homeowners insurance paid by owners with a mortgage. Premiums have risen since 2024, especially in high-risk areas, so get quotes. See buying a home in Maine for other down payments.
Natural disaster risk in Maine
Maine's population-weighted score on FEMA's National Risk Index is 67.8 of 100, above average for U.S. counties and 10th safest of 51. Expected losses from natural hazards average about $305 per resident a year, and no residents live in counties FEMA rates relatively high or very high.
The vertical line marks the middle of U.S. counties (50).
See disaster risk for every Maine county and how to check a home's risk before you move.
Frequently asked questions
Where do people moving to Maine come from?
In IRS migration data for 2022–2023, 20,295 households moved to Maine from other states. The most came from Massachusetts (3,330 households), New Hampshire (2,595) and Florida (2,029).
What are the pros and cons of living in Maine?
Where Maine ranks best among the 50 states and D.C.: lowest car insurance costs, 2nd lowest of 51; lowest homeowners insurance, 4th lowest of 51; lowest natural hazard risk, 10th lowest of 51. Where it ranks worst: highest state income tax, 7th highest of 51; highest Marketplace health premiums, 10th highest of 51.
Is Maine expensive to live in?
Overall prices in Maine are 3.0% below the U.S. average (BEA price level 97.0, 2024), 26th cheapest of 51. Median rent is $1,210 a month and the median home is worth $341,900.
How long do I have to get a Maine driver license after moving?
30 days after becoming a resident. Get a Maine license within 30 days of moving.
How long do I have to register my car in Maine?
30 days. Convert registration and title within 30 days of establishing residency. Pay municipal excise tax at your town office first, then register. Maine requires an annual state safety inspection.
Do new residents pay tax on a car brought to Maine?
5.5% use tax generally applies, but a vehicle bought and used outside Maine while you were a bona fide resident of another state is exempt. Show the out-of-state registration and use tax certificate. If the vehicle was not registered elsewhere, you must document more than 12 months of use outside Maine.
What makes me a Maine resident?
Once you establish residency in Maine, the 30-day license and registration clocks start.