Maine vs West Virginia

Head-to-head homesteading comparison across taxes, land, climate, laws, safety & more

Maine

Rank #9

Overall Winner

Overall Score

69.9

Category Wins

3/10

West Virginia

Rank #34

Overall Score

62.5

Category Wins

5/10

Quick Comparison

Winner highlighted per category

1.24%

Property Tax

0.57%

108.4

Cost of Living

83.2

$3,200

Farm Land $/Acre

$3,200

160 days

Growing Season

180 days

48"

Annual Rainfall

55"

5/10

Soil Quality

5/10

10/10

Safety (Rural)

6/10

8/10

Gun Friendly

9/10

4 hrs

Solar (PSH)

3.85 hrs

80%

Broadband

72%

Maine Edges Out West Virginia Overall

With an overall homesteading score of 69.9 vs 62.5, Maine comes out ahead in our balanced analysis — winning 5 out of 10 key categories. But the best state for you depends on what matters most.

Key differences: West Virginia has a longer growing season (180 vs 160 days). West Virginia has lower property taxes (0.57% vs 1.24%). West Virginia is more affordable with a cost of living index of 83.2 vs 108.4.

Scroll down to the full comparison table for a deep dive into every metric, or use our ranking tool to weight these factors by what matters most to you.

Full Data Comparison

Side-by-side comparison of selected states across homesteading metrics
Data Point	Maine ME	West Virginia WV
Taxes & Cost
	Yes	Yes
	7.15%	5.12%
	5.5%	6.55%
	1.24%	0.57%
	108.4	83.2
Land & Building
	$3,200	$3,200
	Partial	Partial
	Varies	Varies
Climate & Growing
	3b-6a	5b-7a
	160	180
	48"	55"
	5	5
	2	2
	1	2
Water & Energy
	Unrestricted	Unrestricted
	4	3.85
	Yes	Yes
Laws & Freedom
	Medium	Medium
	8	9
	Strong	Moderate
	Yes (Retail Sales)	Herd Share Only
	Yes	Yes
Safety & Healthcare
	112	315
	25%	45%
Demographics & Community
	44.2	73.6
	61%	51%
	80%	72%
Business
	#38	#23
	$175/yr	$100/yr
	3%	4.5%

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