2026 Relocation & Cost Arbitrage Engine

Relocation: Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to Duluth, MN-WI

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 Duluth, MN-WI.

Popular Corridors:
Equivalent Salary
$77,200
To maintain parity
Cost of Living Delta
-22.8%
Overall expenditure basket
Annual Tax Delta
-$5,277
State + local taxes
Annual 1BR Rent Delta
-$6,828
HUD Fair Market Rents
Net Annual Buffer
+$1,551/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

Duluth, MN-WI

COL 96.9
Gross Parity Income $77,200
Federal Income Tax -$8,154
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$5,906
State Income Tax -$3,726
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $59,414
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$11,532
Discretionary Cash Flow $47,882

EPI family budgets put living costs 22.8% lower in Duluth, MN-WI than in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, so $100,000 in Austin goes about as far as $77,200 in Duluth. HUD's one-bedroom Fair Market Rent is $1,530 a month in Austin and $961 in Duluth, $6,828 a year less. On the same $100,000 salary a single filer pays $5,277 more a year in federal, state and local income tax and FICA in Duluth. Taxes and one-bedroom rent together leave you about $1,551 a year better off. The BLS median wage across all occupations is $56,950 in Austin and $50,000 in Duluth.

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) Duluth (Monthly) Monthly Delta ($) Difference (%)
Housing (1BR Fair Market Rent)$1,530$961-$569-37.2%
Food & Groceries$334$358+$24+7.2%
Transportation$1,062$1,081+$19+1.8%
Healthcare$467$442-$25-5.4%
Other Necessities$585$354-$231-39.5%
Total Taxes (Federal, State, Local, FICA)$1,735$2,175+$440+25.4%

HUD Fair Market Rent Differential

1-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$569/mo (-37.2%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $1,530/mo Duluth: $961/mo
2-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$610/mo (-33.6%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $1,817/mo Duluth: $1,207/mo

EPI Living Wage Benchmark Comparison

1 Adult (No Children) -$6.33/hr (-22.8%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $27.77/hr Duluth: $21.44/hr
2 Adults + 1 Child (per earner) -$2.91/hr (-12.2%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $23.78/hr Duluth: $20.87/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 Duluth Median Nominal Wage Delta Action
General and Operations ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$117,850$85,930-$31,920 (-27.1%)View Dossier
Software EngineerTechnologyTechnology$134,120$103,500-$30,620 (-22.8%)View Dossier
Registered Nurse (RN)HealthcareHealthcare$97,890$96,940-$950 (-1.0%)View Dossier
Project Management SpecialistBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$102,390$96,550-$5,840 (-5.7%)View Dossier
Accountant & AuditorFinanceFinance$83,120$77,400-$5,720 (-6.9%)View Dossier
Computer and Information Systems ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$176,990$149,710-$27,280 (-15.4%)View Dossier
Solutions ArchitectTechnologyTechnology$129,470$93,930-$35,540 (-27.5%)View Dossier
Sales ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$151,760$113,360-$38,400 (-25.3%)View Dossier
ElectricianSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$60,390$82,700+$22,310 (+36.9%)View Dossier
Financial ManagerFinanceFinance$167,180$126,800-$40,380 (-24.2%)View Dossier
Marketing ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$164,920$142,080-$22,840 (-13.8%)View Dossier
Management AnalystBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$106,600$88,610-$17,990 (-16.9%)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 Duluth, MN-WI Relocation FAQs

About $77,200. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (125.6 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, 96.9 in Duluth, MN-WI, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Triangular Relocation & Tax Silo

Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to Duluth, MN-WI: State Paychecks, Rents & Reciprocal Corridor

Reverse Route: Duluth, MN-WI to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX
Relocation: Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to Duluth, MN-WI Overview

Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to Duluth, MN-WI: 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 Duluth, MN-WI to match $100,000 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX?

About $77,200. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (125.6 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, 96.9 in Duluth, MN-WI, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Is Duluth, MN-WI cheaper than Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX?

EPI's family budgets for a single adult put overall living costs 22.8% lower in Duluth, MN-WI than in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX. The budgets cover housing, food, transportation, health care and other necessities.