Auburn vs Hillsboro
The short version
- Hillsboro is cheaper overall: prices in its metro run 5% lower than in the Auburn area (BEA 2024).
- The median home costs $521,100 in Hillsboro and $547,900 in Auburn.
- Households earn more in Hillsboro ($106,409 vs $97,884 median).
- Hillsboro is growing faster: +4.4% since 2020 vs -2.4%.
- Commutes are shorter in Hillsboro (23 vs 31 minutes each way).
- Washington has no state income tax on wages; Oregon's top rate is 9.9%.
Side by side
| Auburn, WA | Hillsboro, OR | |
|---|---|---|
| People | ||
| Population (2025) | 86,301 | 111,126 |
| Growth since 2020 | -2.4% | +4.4% |
| People per square mile | 2,918 | 4,202 |
| Median age | 36.0 | 35.0 |
| Bachelor's degree or higher | 26% | 42% |
| Money and housing | ||
| Median household income | $97,884 | $106,409 |
| Median home value | $547,900 | $521,100 |
| Home value to income | 5.6× | 4.9× |
| Median rent (with utilities) | $1,786 | $1,978 |
| Metro price level (US = 100) | 111.1 | 105.4 |
| Housing price level (US = 100) | 151.3 | 125.1 |
| $75,000 elsewhere equals | $83,300 | $79,100 |
| Homeowners | 61% | 50% |
| Top state income tax | None | 9.9% |
| Combined sales tax | 9.57% | 0% |
| Work and commute | ||
| Average commute (minutes) | 30.5 | 22.9 |
| Work from home | 14% | 22% |
| Take public transit | 3% | 4% |
| Unemployment (2020-24 avg) | 6% | 4.8% |
| Poverty rate | 8.9% | 8.5% |
| Weather | ||
| January high / low | 48° / 38° | 47° / 34° |
| July high / low | 77° / 57° | 82° / 52° |
| Precipitation per year | 39 in | 36 in |
| Snowfall per year | 6 in | 3 in |
| Days 90°F or hotter | 4 | 17 |
| Nights below freezing | 25 | 64 |
| Comfortable months | 5 | 5 |
| Risks, air and home prices | ||
| Natural hazard risk (FEMA, county) | Very High | Relatively High |
| FEMA risk score (lower is safer) | 99.7 | 96.0 |
| Good air days, 2025 | 56% | 70% |
| Home prices, past year | +0.3% | +1.4% |
| Home prices, past 5 years | +24.6% | +21.2% |
Highlighted cells are the better value where "better" is clear (lower prices, higher income, shorter commutes). Sources: Census Bureau 2025 estimates and ACS 2020-2024, BEA 2024, NOAA 1991-2020, Tax Foundation 2026.
Weather, month by month
Most comfortable months: Auburn: May to September. Hillsboro: May to September.
Full monthly tables: Auburn weather by month and Hillsboro weather by month.
What $75,000 is worth
A $75,000 salary in an average-priced US city buys about the same as $83,300 in Auburn and $79,100 in Hillsboro. Moving from Auburn to Hillsboro, you would need about $71,100 to match a $75,000 salary.
Moving between Auburn and Hillsboro
IRS county-to-county migration, 2022 to 2023 tax years, for the counties that contain each city. See where else people move from Auburn and Hillsboro.
Which would you pick?
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