2026 Relocation & Cost Arbitrage Engine

Relocation: Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to Columbus, OH

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 Columbus, OH.

Popular Corridors:
Equivalent Salary
$84,800
To maintain parity
Cost of Living Delta
-15.2%
Overall expenditure basket
Annual Tax Delta
-$4,481
State + local taxes
Annual 1BR Rent Delta
-$2,208
HUD Fair Market Rents
Net Annual Buffer
-$2,273/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

Columbus, OH

COL 106.5
Gross Parity Income $84,800
Federal Income Tax -$9,826
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$6,487
State Income Tax -$1,563
Local / City Tax -$2,120
Net Annual Take-Home $64,803
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$16,152
Discretionary Cash Flow $48,651

EPI family budgets put living costs 15.2% lower in Columbus, OH than in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, so $100,000 in Austin goes about as far as $84,800 in Columbus. HUD's one-bedroom Fair Market Rent is $1,530 a month in Austin and $1,346 in Columbus, $2,208 a year less. On the same $100,000 salary a single filer pays $4,481 more a year in federal, state and local income tax and FICA in Columbus. Taxes and one-bedroom rent together leave you about $2,273 a year worse off. The BLS median wage across all occupations is $56,950 in Austin and $51,340 in Columbus.

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) Columbus (Monthly) Monthly Delta ($) Difference (%)
Housing (1BR Fair Market Rent)$1,530$1,346-$184-12.0%
Food & Groceries$334$355+$21+6.3%
Transportation$1,062$996-$66-6.2%
Healthcare$467$453-$14-3.0%
Other Necessities$585$453-$132-22.6%
Total Taxes (Federal, State, Local, FICA)$1,735$2,108+$373+21.5%

HUD Fair Market Rent Differential

1-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$184/mo (-12.0%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $1,530/mo Columbus: $1,346/mo
2-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$215/mo (-11.8%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $1,817/mo Columbus: $1,602/mo

EPI Living Wage Benchmark Comparison

1 Adult (No Children) -$4.22/hr (-15.2%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $27.77/hr Columbus: $23.55/hr
2 Adults + 1 Child (per earner) -$1.39/hr (-5.8%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $23.78/hr Columbus: $22.39/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 Columbus Median Nominal Wage Delta Action
General and Operations ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$117,850$102,590-$15,260 (-12.9%)View Dossier
Registered Nurse (RN)HealthcareHealthcare$97,890$83,900-$13,990 (-14.3%)View Dossier
Software EngineerTechnologyTechnology$134,120$122,340-$11,780 (-8.8%)View Dossier
Project Management SpecialistBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$102,390$98,660-$3,730 (-3.6%)View Dossier
Accountant & AuditorFinanceFinance$83,120$81,700-$1,420 (-1.7%)View Dossier
Computer and Information Systems ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$176,990$167,630-$9,360 (-5.3%)View Dossier
ElectricianSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$60,390$64,700+$4,310 (+7.1%)View Dossier
Management AnalystBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$106,600$90,010-$16,590 (-15.6%)View Dossier
Sales ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$151,760$138,580-$13,180 (-8.7%)View Dossier
Financial ManagerFinanceFinance$167,180$145,630-$21,550 (-12.9%)View Dossier
Solutions ArchitectTechnologyTechnology$129,470$129,940+$470 (+0.4%)View Dossier
Medical and Health Services ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$126,110$107,520-$18,590 (-14.7%)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 Columbus, OH Relocation FAQs

About $84,800. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (125.6 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, 106.5 in Columbus, OH, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Triangular Relocation & Tax Silo

Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to Columbus, OH: State Paychecks, Rents & Reciprocal Corridor

Reverse Route: Columbus, OH to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX
Relocation: Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to Columbus, OH Overview

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

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

About $84,800. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (125.6 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, 106.5 in Columbus, OH, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Is Columbus, OH cheaper than Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX?

EPI's family budgets for a single adult put overall living costs 15.2% lower in Columbus, OH than in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX. The budgets cover housing, food, transportation, health care and other necessities.