2026 Relocation & Cost Arbitrage Engine

Relocation: Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to Barnstable Town, MA

Data updated · Sources: HUD FY 2027 Fair Market Rents, EPI 2026 Family Budget, 2026 tax tables · Methodology

Income tax, HUD Fair Market Rents and EPI living costs for a move from Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to Barnstable Town, MA.

Popular Corridors:
Equivalent Salary
$120,100
To maintain parity
Cost of Living Delta
+20.1%
Overall expenditure basket
Annual Tax Delta
-$4,780
State + local taxes
Annual 1BR Rent Delta
+$4,464
HUD Fair Market Rents
Net Annual Buffer
-$9,244/yr
Tax + housing gain

Interactive Purchasing Power Equivalency Workbench

Adjust your current salary at origin to dynamically compute the statutory tax burden, housing costs, and discretionary cash in both markets.

Presets:
$
$30,000 $100,000 $200,000 $300,000
Origin Location

Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX

COL 125.6
Gross Annual Income $100,000
Federal Income Tax -$13,170
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$7,650
State Income Tax -$0
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $79,180
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$18,360
Discretionary Cash Flow $60,820
Target Market
Destination Location

Barnstable Town, MA

COL 150.8
Gross Parity Income $120,100
Federal Income Tax -$17,592
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$9,188
State Income Tax -$5,785
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $87,535
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$22,824
Discretionary Cash Flow $64,711

EPI family budgets put living costs 20.1% higher in Barnstable Town, MA than in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, so $100,000 in Austin goes about as far as $120,100 in Barnstable Town. HUD's one-bedroom Fair Market Rent is $1,530 a month in Austin and $1,902 in Barnstable Town, $4,464 a year more. On the same $100,000 salary a single filer pays $4,780 more a year in federal, state and local income tax and FICA in Barnstable Town. Taxes and one-bedroom rent together leave you about $9,244 a year worse off. The BLS median wage across all occupations is $56,950 in Austin and $56,360 in Barnstable Town.

Itemized Cost of Living Expenditure Arbitrage

Category-by-category breakdown of monthly baseline consumption between origin and destination.

Expenditure Category Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos (Monthly) Barnstable Town (Monthly) Monthly Delta ($) Difference (%)
Housing (1BR Fair Market Rent)$1,530$1,902+$372+24.3%
Food & Groceries$334$445+$111+33.2%
Transportation$1,062$1,122+$60+5.6%
Healthcare$467$459-$8-1.7%
Other Necessities$585$678+$93+15.9%
Total Taxes (Federal, State, Local, FICA)$1,735$2,133+$398+22.9%

HUD Fair Market Rent Differential

1-Bedroom Fair Market Rent +$372/mo (24.3%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $1,530/mo Barnstable Town: $1,902/mo
2-Bedroom Fair Market Rent +$671/mo (36.9%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $1,817/mo Barnstable Town: $2,488/mo

EPI Living Wage Benchmark Comparison

1 Adult (No Children) +$5.59/hr (20.1%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $27.77/hr Barnstable Town: $33.36/hr
2 Adults + 1 Child (per earner) +$6.61/hr (27.8%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $23.78/hr Barnstable Town: $30.39/hr

Top Local Occupations Wage Parity

BLS median wage comparisons across benchmark roles between both metropolitan labor markets.

Occupation Title Industry Sector Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos Median Barnstable Town Median Nominal Wage Delta Action
General and Operations ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$117,850$100,590-$17,260 (-14.6%)View Dossier
Software EngineerTechnologyTechnology$134,120$133,690-$430 (-0.3%)View Dossier
Registered Nurse (RN)HealthcareHealthcare$97,890$103,380+$5,490 (+5.6%)View Dossier
Project Management SpecialistBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$102,390$102,980+$590 (+0.6%)View Dossier
Accountant & AuditorFinanceFinance$83,120$96,110+$12,990 (+15.6%)View Dossier
Computer and Information Systems ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$176,990$177,300+$310 (+0.2%)View Dossier
Solutions ArchitectTechnologyTechnology$129,470$109,090-$20,380 (-15.7%)View Dossier
Sales ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$151,760$140,740-$11,020 (-7.3%)View Dossier
ElectricianSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$60,390$78,570+$18,180 (+30.1%)View Dossier
Financial ManagerFinanceFinance$167,180$156,010-$11,170 (-6.7%)View Dossier
Marketing ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$164,920$157,490-$7,430 (-4.5%)View Dossier
Management AnalystBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$106,600$132,140+$25,540 (+24.0%)View Dossier

Major US Inter-Metro Relocation Corridors

Empirical cost differentials and statutory tax savings across high-volume migration routes.

New York-Newark-Jersey City → Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos

On $100k: $8,301 less tax and $14,388 less 1BR rent a year

-30.6% COL+$22,689/yr
San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont → Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos

On $100k: $6,211 less tax and $17,676 less 1BR rent a year

-30.4% COL+$23,887/yr
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin → Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington

On $100k: $4,805 less tax and $2,928 less 1BR rent a year

-2.2% COL+$7,733/yr
San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont → Columbus

On $100k: $1,729 less tax and $19,884 less 1BR rent a year

-41.0% COL+$21,613/yr
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim → Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler

On $100k: $4,113 less tax and $10,908 less 1BR rent a year

-13.5% COL+$15,021/yr
Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue → Denver-Aurora-Centennial

On $100k: $3,761 more tax and $4,188 less 1BR rent a year

-13.6% COL+$427/yr
Boston-Cambridge-Newton → Raleigh-Cary

On $100k: $1,299 less tax and $11,592 less 1BR rent a year

-16.2% COL+$12,891/yr
New York-Newark-Jersey City → Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach

On $100k: $8,301 less tax and $7,296 less 1BR rent a year

-27.3% COL+$15,597/yr

Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to Barnstable Town, MA Relocation FAQs

About $120,100. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (125.6 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, 150.8 in Barnstable Town, MA, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Triangular Relocation & Tax Silo

Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to Barnstable Town, MA: State Paychecks, Rents & Reciprocal Corridor

Reverse Route: Barnstable Town, MA to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX
Relocation: Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to Barnstable Town, MA Overview

Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to Barnstable Town, MA: 2026 federal, state & local income tax, HUD Fair Market Rents & EPI living costs compared on the same.

Quick answers
How much salary do I need in Barnstable Town, MA to match $100,000 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX?

About $120,100. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (125.6 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, 150.8 in Barnstable Town, MA, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Is Barnstable Town, MA cheaper than Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX?

EPI's family budgets for a single adult put overall living costs 20.1% higher in Barnstable Town, MA than in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX. The budgets cover housing, food, transportation, health care and other necessities.