2026 Relocation & Cost Arbitrage Engine

Relocation: Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to Fort Wayne, IN

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 Fort Wayne, IN.

Popular Corridors:
Equivalent Salary
$80,900
To maintain parity
Cost of Living Delta
-19.1%
Overall expenditure basket
Annual Tax Delta
-$4,495
State + local taxes
Annual 1BR Rent Delta
-$6,048
HUD Fair Market Rents
Net Annual Buffer
+$1,553/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

Fort Wayne, IN

COL 101.6
Gross Parity Income $80,900
Federal Income Tax -$8,968
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$6,189
State Income Tax -$2,357
Local / City Tax -$1,270
Net Annual Take-Home $62,116
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$12,312
Discretionary Cash Flow $49,804

EPI family budgets put living costs 19.1% lower in Fort Wayne, IN than in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, so $100,000 in Austin goes about as far as $80,900 in Fort Wayne. HUD's one-bedroom Fair Market Rent is $1,530 a month in Austin and $1,026 in Fort Wayne, $6,048 a year less. On the same $100,000 salary a single filer pays $4,495 more a year in federal, state and local income tax and FICA in Fort Wayne. Taxes and one-bedroom rent together leave you about $1,553 a year better off. The BLS median wage across all occupations is $56,950 in Austin and $47,700 in Fort Wayne.

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) Fort Wayne (Monthly) Monthly Delta ($) Difference (%)
Housing (1BR Fair Market Rent)$1,530$1,026-$504-32.9%
Food & Groceries$334$327-$7-2.1%
Transportation$1,062$1,048-$14-1.3%
Healthcare$467$459-$8-1.7%
Other Necessities$585$394-$191-32.6%
Total Taxes (Federal, State, Local, FICA)$1,735$2,110+$375+21.6%

HUD Fair Market Rent Differential

1-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$504/mo (-32.9%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $1,530/mo Fort Wayne: $1,026/mo
2-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$569/mo (-31.3%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $1,817/mo Fort Wayne: $1,248/mo

EPI Living Wage Benchmark Comparison

1 Adult (No Children) -$5.31/hr (-19.1%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $27.77/hr Fort Wayne: $22.46/hr
2 Adults + 1 Child (per earner) -$3.16/hr (-13.3%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $23.78/hr Fort Wayne: $20.62/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 Fort Wayne Median Nominal Wage Delta Action
General and Operations ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$117,850$107,780-$10,070 (-8.5%)View Dossier
Software EngineerTechnologyTechnology$134,120$101,560-$32,560 (-24.3%)View Dossier
Registered Nurse (RN)HealthcareHealthcare$97,890$79,630-$18,260 (-18.7%)View Dossier
Project Management SpecialistBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$102,390$92,590-$9,800 (-9.6%)View Dossier
Accountant & AuditorFinanceFinance$83,120$75,250-$7,870 (-9.5%)View Dossier
Computer and Information Systems ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$176,990$138,350-$38,640 (-21.8%)View Dossier
Sales ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$151,760$122,540-$29,220 (-19.3%)View Dossier
Solutions ArchitectTechnologyTechnology$129,470$82,860-$46,610 (-36.0%)View Dossier
ElectricianSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$60,390$71,290+$10,900 (+18.0%)View Dossier
Financial ManagerFinanceFinance$167,180$130,900-$36,280 (-21.7%)View Dossier
Marketing ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$164,920$140,270-$24,650 (-14.9%)View Dossier
Management AnalystBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$106,600$93,640-$12,960 (-12.2%)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 Fort Wayne, IN Relocation FAQs

About $80,900. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (125.6 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, 101.6 in Fort Wayne, IN, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Triangular Relocation & Tax Silo

Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to Fort Wayne, IN: State Paychecks, Rents & Reciprocal Corridor

Reverse Route: Fort Wayne, IN to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX
Relocation: Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to Fort Wayne, IN Overview

Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to Fort Wayne, IN: 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 Fort Wayne, IN to match $100,000 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX?

About $80,900. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (125.6 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, 101.6 in Fort Wayne, IN, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Is Fort Wayne, IN cheaper than Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX?

EPI's family budgets for a single adult put overall living costs 19.1% lower in Fort Wayne, IN than in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX. The budgets cover housing, food, transportation, health care and other necessities.