2026 Relocation & Cost Arbitrage Engine

Relocation: Austin-Round Rock, TX to Detroit-Dearborn, MI

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 Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI.

Popular Corridors:
Equivalent Salary
$78,000
To maintain parity
Cost of Living Delta
-22.0%
Overall expenditure basket
Annual Tax Delta
-$6,385
State + local taxes
Annual 1BR Rent Delta
-$4,356
HUD Fair Market Rents
Net Annual Buffer
-$2,029/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

Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI

COL 97.9
Gross Parity Income $78,000
Federal Income Tax -$8,330
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$5,967
State Income Tax -$3,064
Local / City Tax -$1,858
Net Annual Take-Home $58,781
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$14,004
Discretionary Cash Flow $44,777

EPI family budgets put living costs 22.0% lower in Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI than in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, so $100,000 in Austin goes about as far as $78,000 in Detroit. HUD's one-bedroom Fair Market Rent is $1,530 a month in Austin and $1,167 in Detroit, $4,356 a year less. On the same $100,000 salary a single filer pays $6,385 more a year in federal, state and local income tax and FICA in Detroit. Taxes and one-bedroom rent together leave you about $2,029 a year worse off. The BLS median wage across all occupations is $56,950 in Austin and $52,080 in Detroit.

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) Detroit-Warren-Dearborn (Monthly) Monthly Delta ($) Difference (%)
Housing (1BR Fair Market Rent)$1,530$1,167-$363-23.7%
Food & Groceries$334$351+$17+5.1%
Transportation$1,062$973-$89-8.4%
Healthcare$467$366-$101-21.6%
Other Necessities$585$417-$168-28.7%
Total Taxes (Federal, State, Local, FICA)$1,735$2,267+$532+30.7%

HUD Fair Market Rent Differential

1-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$363/mo (-23.7%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $1,530/mo Detroit-Warren-Dearborn: $1,167/mo
2-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$358/mo (-19.7%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $1,817/mo Detroit-Warren-Dearborn: $1,459/mo

EPI Living Wage Benchmark Comparison

1 Adult (No Children) -$6.11/hr (-22.0%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $27.77/hr Detroit-Warren-Dearborn: $21.66/hr
2 Adults + 1 Child (per earner) -$3.29/hr (-13.8%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $23.78/hr Detroit-Warren-Dearborn: $20.49/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 Detroit-Warren-Dearborn Median Nominal Wage Delta Action
General and Operations ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$117,850$104,010-$13,840 (-11.7%)View Dossier
Registered Nurse (RN)HealthcareHealthcare$97,890$97,280-$610 (-0.6%)View Dossier
Software EngineerTechnologyTechnology$134,120$130,760-$3,360 (-2.5%)View Dossier
Accountant & AuditorFinanceFinance$83,120$80,650-$2,470 (-3.0%)View Dossier
Project Management SpecialistBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$102,390$105,350+$2,960 (+2.9%)View Dossier
Computer and Information Systems ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$176,990$170,040-$6,950 (-3.9%)View Dossier
Financial ManagerFinanceFinance$167,180$160,240-$6,940 (-4.2%)View Dossier
Sales ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$151,760$155,560+$3,800 (+2.5%)View Dossier
ElectricianSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$60,390$81,990+$21,600 (+35.8%)View Dossier
Quality Control InspectorIndustrial ManufacturingIndustrial Manufacturing$48,260$45,400-$2,860 (-5.9%)View Dossier
Solutions ArchitectTechnologyTechnology$129,470$107,560-$21,910 (-16.9%)View Dossier
Architectural and Engineering ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$176,540$168,550-$7,990 (-4.5%)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 Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI Relocation FAQs

About $78,000. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (125.6 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, 97.9 in Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Triangular Relocation & Tax Silo

Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI: State Paychecks, Rents & Reciprocal Corridor

Reverse Route: Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX
Relocation: Austin-Round Rock, TX to Detroit-Dearborn, MI Overview

Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI: 2026 federal, state & local income tax, HUD Fair Market Rents & EPI living costs compared on. Official 2026 economic data for Relocation: Austin-Round Rock, TX to Detroit-Dearborn, MI 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 Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI to match $100,000 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX?

About $78,000. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (125.6 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, 97.9 in Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Is Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI cheaper than Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX?

EPI's family budgets for a single adult put overall living costs 22.0% lower in Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI than in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX. The budgets cover housing, food, transportation, health care and other necessities.