2026 Relocation & Cost Arbitrage Engine

Relocation: Austin-Round Rock, TX to Durham-Chapel Hill, NC

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 Durham-Chapel Hill, NC.

Popular Corridors:
Equivalent Salary
$107,900
To maintain parity
Cost of Living Delta
+7.9%
Overall expenditure basket
Annual Tax Delta
-$3,481
State + local taxes
Annual 1BR Rent Delta
+$288
HUD Fair Market Rents
Net Annual Buffer
-$3,769/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

Durham-Chapel Hill, NC

COL 135.4
Gross Parity Income $107,900
Federal Income Tax -$14,908
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$8,254
State Income Tax -$3,796
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $80,941
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$18,648
Discretionary Cash Flow $62,293

EPI family budgets put living costs 7.9% higher in Durham-Chapel Hill, NC than in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, so $100,000 in Austin goes about as far as $107,900 in Durham. HUD's one-bedroom Fair Market Rent is $1,530 a month in Austin and $1,554 in Durham, $288 a year more. On the same $100,000 salary a single filer pays $3,481 more a year in federal, state and local income tax and FICA in Durham. Taxes and one-bedroom rent together leave you about $3,769 a year worse off. The BLS median wage across all occupations is $56,950 in Austin and $60,720 in Durham.

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) Durham-Chapel Hill (Monthly) Monthly Delta ($) Difference (%)
Housing (1BR Fair Market Rent)$1,530$1,554+$24+1.6%
Food & Groceries$334$387+$53+15.9%
Transportation$1,062$1,051-$11-1.0%
Healthcare$467$462-$5-1.1%
Other Necessities$585$601+$16+2.7%
Total Taxes (Federal, State, Local, FICA)$1,735$2,025+$290+16.7%

HUD Fair Market Rent Differential

1-Bedroom Fair Market Rent +$24/mo (1.6%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $1,530/mo Durham-Chapel Hill: $1,554/mo
2-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$72/mo (-4.0%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $1,817/mo Durham-Chapel Hill: $1,745/mo

EPI Living Wage Benchmark Comparison

1 Adult (No Children) +$2.18/hr (7.9%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $27.77/hr Durham-Chapel Hill: $29.95/hr
2 Adults + 1 Child (per earner) +$1.18/hr (5.0%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $23.78/hr Durham-Chapel Hill: $24.96/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 Durham-Chapel Hill Median Nominal Wage Delta Action
General and Operations ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$117,850$113,930-$3,920 (-3.3%)View Dossier
Software EngineerTechnologyTechnology$134,120$135,620+$1,500 (+1.1%)View Dossier
Project Management SpecialistBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$102,390$104,870+$2,480 (+2.4%)View Dossier
Accountant & AuditorFinanceFinance$83,120$85,090+$1,970 (+2.4%)View Dossier
Computer and Information Systems ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$176,990$176,190-$800 (-0.5%)View Dossier
Solutions ArchitectTechnologyTechnology$129,470$126,300-$3,170 (-2.4%)View Dossier
Sales ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$151,760$190,370+$38,610 (+25.4%)View Dossier
Financial ManagerFinanceFinance$167,180$165,470-$1,710 (-1.0%)View Dossier
ElectricianSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$60,390$59,220-$1,170 (-1.9%)View Dossier
Marketing ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$164,920$175,160+$10,240 (+6.2%)View Dossier
Management AnalystBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$106,600$126,110+$19,510 (+18.3%)View Dossier
Medical and Health Services ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$126,110$133,970+$7,860 (+6.2%)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 Durham-Chapel Hill, NC Relocation FAQs

About $107,900. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (125.6 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, 135.4 in Durham-Chapel Hill, NC, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Triangular Relocation & Tax Silo

Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to Durham-Chapel Hill, NC: State Paychecks, Rents & Reciprocal Corridor

Reverse Route: Durham-Chapel Hill, NC to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX
Relocation: Austin-Round Rock, TX to Durham-Chapel Hill, NC Overview

Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to Durham-Chapel Hill, NC: 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 Durham-Chapel Hill, NC 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 Durham-Chapel Hill, NC to match $100,000 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX?

About $107,900. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (125.6 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, 135.4 in Durham-Chapel Hill, NC, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Is Durham-Chapel Hill, NC cheaper than Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX?

EPI's family budgets for a single adult put overall living costs 7.9% higher in Durham-Chapel Hill, NC than in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX. The budgets cover housing, food, transportation, health care and other necessities.