Moving to New Hampshire
New residents have 60 days to get a New Hampshire driver license and must register a car within 60 days. Prices are 4.2% above the U.S. average, and there is no state income tax on wages. 26,576 households moved here from other states in 2022–2023, most often from Massachusetts and Maine.
New resident checklist for New Hampshire
Driver license
Within 60 days of establishing domicile/residence. Bring proof of identity, your Social Security number and two proofs of your New Hampshire address.
Vehicle title and registration
Register within 60 days, starting at your town/city clerk (bring title and proof of residency). The annual safety/emissions inspection was repealed from Jan 31, 2026 but challenged in federal court and suspended pending appeal; check current status. Switch your auto insurance to a New Hampshire policy.
Taxes or fees on a car you bring: None: New Hampshire has no sales or use tax on vehicles.
Annual registration: State fee by weight plus a town/city permit fee on the original list price at 18 mills (current model year), falling to 15, 12, 9 and 6, then 3 mills for vehicles 5+ model years old ($5 minimum).
Extra yearly fee for an electric vehicle: $100.
Establishing residency
Domicile is shown by acts such as buying or leasing a primary home, registering to vote, enrolling children in public school, or paying resident-only taxes. Residency also decides where you pay income tax in the year you move; see taxes the year you move.
Your first-month checklist in New Hampshire
- Register to vote at your new address.
- Update your address with the IRS (Form 8822), your employer and your bank.
- New Hampshire has no state income tax on wages, so ask your employer to stop withholding for your old state from your move date.
- Set up utilities and get renters or homeowners insurance. Owners with a mortgage here paid a median $1,197 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: dmv.nh.gov. Sources: dmv.nh.gov (2), gc.nh.gov, law.justia.com, dmv.nh.gov (3), nhpr.org. Reviewed 2026-09-25. Rules and fees change; confirm with the New Hampshire motor vehicle agency before you go.
Compare your move to New Hampshire
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 New Hampshire.
Equal salary in NH: $95,500
To keep the same lifestyle, you need about $95,500 in New Hampshire to match $105,000 in Massachusetts ($9,500 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 | New Hampshire |
|---|---|---|
| Federal income tax | $14,270 | $14,270 |
| Social Security + Medicare | $8,033 | $8,033 |
| State income tax | $5,030 | $0 |
| State payroll programs (UI, disability, paid leave, transit) | $483 | $0 |
| Take-home pay | $77,185 | $82,698 |
Full reports for the most common moves to New Hampshire: Massachusetts to New Hampshire, Maine to New Hampshire, Florida to New Hampshire, New York to New Hampshire, Vermont to New Hampshire and Connecticut to New Hampshire.
Living in New Hampshire: costs, taxes and risk
Of the 51 (the 50 states and D.C.), New Hampshire is in the best 10 for state income tax, health premiums and household income, and in the worst 10 for property tax rate, overall prices and cost to own a home.
- Median rent
- $1,558/mo U.S. $1,487
- Cost to own the median home
- $3,088/mo U.S. $2,298
- Take-home on $100,000
- $79,180 $4,102 more than in the median state
- Property tax (effective)
- 1.46% median $6,707/yr
- FEMA risk score
- 78.8 of 100 Above average for U.S. counties
- Moved in from other states
- 26,576 households, IRS 2022–2023
Pros and cons of living in New Hampshire
How New Hampshire 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 New Hampshire ranks best
- Top 10 Lowest state income tax: no tax on wages, tied with 8 other states for the lowest.
- Top 5 Lowest Marketplace health premiums: $401 a month for a benchmark plan at age 40, before subsidies (KFF 2026), the lowest of 51.
- Top 10 Highest household incomes: $99,782 median household income (Census ACS 2024), 7th highest of 51.
Where New Hampshire ranks worst
- Bottom 5 Highest property tax rate: 1.46% of home value a year, 4th highest of 51.
- Bottom 10 Highest overall prices: price level 104.2 (U.S. = 100, BEA 2024), 9th highest of 51.
- Bottom 10 Highest cost to own a home: $3,088 a month for the median home with 20% down, 9th 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 New Hampshire residents come from
In the latest IRS migration data (2022–2023), 26,576 households filed their taxes in New Hampshire after filing in another state the year before. Massachusetts sent the most, 10,603 households (40% of the total). New Hampshire gained a net 2,168 households from other states that year.
Five-year trend
Moves to New Hampshire from other states peaked in 2020–21 at 28,859 households, then fell 8% to 26,576 in 2022–23, up 8% from 2018–19. New Hampshire 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 +2,348, 2019–20 +5,309, 2020–21 +5,528, 2021–22 +3,753, 2022–23 +2,168.
Cost of living in New Hampshire vs the U.S.
Overall prices in New Hampshire are 4.2% above the U.S. average, 43rd cheapest of 51. The widest gap is in utilities (133.7), 34% above the U.S. level.
The vertical line marks the U.S. average (100). BEA Regional Price Parities 2024.
- Average electric bill
- $145/mo U.S. $142
- Car insurance, per car
- $987/yr U.S. $1,282
- Health plan, age 40
- $401/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 New Hampshire: take-home pay at three incomes
New Hampshire has no state income tax on wages. Here is what a single filer keeps after 2026 federal and state taxes, compared with the middle of all 51.
| Salary | NH income tax | Take-home | vs. median state |
|---|---|---|---|
| $50,000 | $0 | $42,355 | +$1,577 |
| $100,000 | $0 | $79,180 | +$4,102 |
| $150,000 | $0 | $113,791 | +$6,205 |
Single filer, 2026 tax rules, standard deduction. Take-home is after federal income tax, Social Security, Medicare and New Hampshire income 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.
New Hampshire has no statewide sales tax. Homeowners pay a median $6,707 a year in property tax, 1.46% of the median home value (property tax by county). Retiring? See how New Hampshire taxes Social Security and pensions. Moving mid-year? Read about taxes the year you move.
Cities in New Hampshire: where a paycheck goes furthest
The Manchester metro area is the only one of the 149 U.S. metro areas we cover that is centered in New Hampshire. About $80,000 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Manchester | $80,000 | 105.7 | $1,714 | $476,000 |
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.
Parts of New Hampshire also belong to the Boston metro area, which is centered outside New Hampshire.
Housing and home insurance in New Hampshire
| Measure | New Hampshire | U.S. |
|---|---|---|
| Median rent (monthly) | $1,558 | $1,487 |
| Median home value | $458,800 | $360,600 |
| Monthly cost to own the median home (20% down) | $3,088 | $2,298 |
| Income needed to buy the median home | $132,355 | $98,486 |
| Median property tax (yearly) | $6,707 | $3,211 |
| Homeowners insurance (yearly median, homes with a mortgage) | $1,197 | $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 New Hampshire for other down payments.
Natural disaster risk in New Hampshire
New Hampshire's population-weighted score on FEMA's National Risk Index is 78.8 of 100, above average for U.S. counties and 23rd safest of 51. Expected losses from natural hazards average about $336 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 New Hampshire county and how to check a home's risk before you move.
Frequently asked questions
Where do people moving to New Hampshire come from?
In IRS migration data for 2022–2023, 26,576 households moved to New Hampshire from other states. The most came from Massachusetts (10,603 households), Maine (1,972) and Florida (1,842).
What are the pros and cons of living in New Hampshire?
Where New Hampshire ranks best among the 50 states and D.C.: lowest state income tax, tied with 8 other states for the lowest; lowest Marketplace health premiums, the lowest of 51; highest household incomes, 7th highest of 51. Where it ranks worst: highest property tax rate, 4th highest of 51; highest overall prices, 9th highest of 51; highest cost to own a home, 9th highest of 51.
Is New Hampshire expensive to live in?
Overall prices in New Hampshire are 4.2% above the U.S. average (BEA price level 104.2, 2024), 43rd cheapest of 51. Median rent is $1,558 a month and the median home is worth $458,800.
How long do I have to get a New Hampshire driver license after moving?
60 days after becoming a resident. Within 60 days of establishing domicile/residence.
How long do I have to register my car in New Hampshire?
60 days. Register within 60 days, starting at your town/city clerk (bring title and proof of residency). The annual safety/emissions inspection was repealed from Jan 31, 2026 but challenged in federal court and suspended pending appeal; check current status.
Do new residents pay tax on a car brought to New Hampshire?
None: New Hampshire has no sales or use tax on vehicles.
What makes me a New Hampshire resident?
Domicile is shown by acts such as buying or leasing a primary home, registering to vote, enrolling children in public school, or paying resident-only taxes.