2026 Relocation & Cost Arbitrage Engine

Relocation: Austin-Round Rock, TX to Charleston Metro, SC

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 Charleston-North Charleston, SC.

Popular Corridors:
Equivalent Salary
$108,700
To maintain parity
Cost of Living Delta
+8.7%
Overall expenditure basket
Annual Tax Delta
-$4,244
State + local taxes
Annual 1BR Rent Delta
+$2,412
HUD Fair Market Rents
Net Annual Buffer
-$6,656/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

Charleston-North Charleston, SC

COL 136.5
Gross Parity Income $108,700
Federal Income Tax -$15,084
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$8,316
State Income Tax -$4,697
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $80,603
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$20,772
Discretionary Cash Flow $59,831

EPI family budgets put living costs 8.7% higher in Charleston-North Charleston, SC than in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, so $100,000 in Austin goes about as far as $108,700 in Charleston. HUD's one-bedroom Fair Market Rent is $1,530 a month in Austin and $1,731 in Charleston, $2,412 a year more. On the same $100,000 salary a single filer pays $4,244 more a year in federal, state and local income tax and FICA in Charleston. Taxes and one-bedroom rent together leave you about $6,656 a year worse off. The BLS median wage across all occupations is $56,950 in Austin and $49,150 in Charleston.

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) Charleston-North Charleston (Monthly) Monthly Delta ($) Difference (%)
Housing (1BR Fair Market Rent)$1,530$1,731+$201+13.1%
Food & Groceries$334$380+$46+13.8%
Transportation$1,062$1,060-$2-0.2%
Healthcare$467$429-$38-8.1%
Other Necessities$585$609+$24+4.1%
Total Taxes (Federal, State, Local, FICA)$1,735$2,089+$354+20.4%

HUD Fair Market Rent Differential

1-Bedroom Fair Market Rent +$201/mo (13.1%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $1,530/mo Charleston-North Charleston: $1,731/mo
2-Bedroom Fair Market Rent +$67/mo (3.7%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $1,817/mo Charleston-North Charleston: $1,884/mo

EPI Living Wage Benchmark Comparison

1 Adult (No Children) +$2.41/hr (8.7%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $27.77/hr Charleston-North Charleston: $30.18/hr
2 Adults + 1 Child (per earner) +$0.33/hr (1.4%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $23.78/hr Charleston-North Charleston: $24.11/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 Charleston-North Charleston Median Nominal Wage Delta Action
General and Operations ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$117,850$109,260-$8,590 (-7.3%)View Dossier
Software EngineerTechnologyTechnology$134,120$132,150-$1,970 (-1.5%)View Dossier
Registered Nurse (RN)HealthcareHealthcare$97,890$92,800-$5,090 (-5.2%)View Dossier
Project Management SpecialistBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$102,390$94,730-$7,660 (-7.5%)View Dossier
Accountant & AuditorFinanceFinance$83,120$79,350-$3,770 (-4.5%)View Dossier
Computer and Information Systems ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$176,990$167,000-$9,990 (-5.6%)View Dossier
Solutions ArchitectTechnologyTechnology$129,470$131,600+$2,130 (+1.6%)View Dossier
Sales ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$151,760$139,830-$11,930 (-7.9%)View Dossier
Management AnalystBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$106,600$104,650-$1,950 (-1.8%)View Dossier
ElectricianSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$60,390$59,010-$1,380 (-2.3%)View Dossier
Financial ManagerFinanceFinance$167,180$147,170-$20,010 (-12.0%)View Dossier
Marketing ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$164,920$138,790-$26,130 (-15.8%)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 Charleston-North Charleston, SC Relocation FAQs

About $108,700. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (125.6 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, 136.5 in Charleston-North Charleston, SC, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Triangular Relocation & Tax Silo

Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to Charleston-North Charleston, SC: State Paychecks, Rents & Reciprocal Corridor

Reverse Route: Charleston-North Charleston, SC to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX
Relocation: Austin-Round Rock, TX to Charleston Metro, SC Overview

Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to Charleston-North Charleston, SC: 2026 federal, state & local income tax, HUD Fair Market Rents & EPI living costs compared. Official 2026 economic data for Relocation: Austin-Round Rock, TX to Charleston Metro, SC compiled from Bureau of Labor Statistics OEWS surveys, HUD Fair Market Rents, and statutory tax codes.

Quick answers
How much salary do I need in Charleston-North Charleston, SC to match $100,000 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX?

About $108,700. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (125.6 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, 136.5 in Charleston-North Charleston, SC, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Is Charleston-North Charleston, SC cheaper than Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX?

EPI's family budgets for a single adult put overall living costs 8.7% higher in Charleston-North Charleston, SC than in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX. The budgets cover housing, food, transportation, health care and other necessities.