2026 Relocation & Cost Arbitrage Engine

Relocation: Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to Hattiesburg, MS

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 Hattiesburg, MS.

Popular Corridors:
Equivalent Salary
$82,700
To maintain parity
Cost of Living Delta
-17.3%
Overall expenditure basket
Annual Tax Delta
-$3,268
State + local taxes
Annual 1BR Rent Delta
-$4,956
HUD Fair Market Rents
Net Annual Buffer
+$1,688/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

Hattiesburg, MS

COL 103.8
Gross Parity Income $82,700
Federal Income Tax -$9,364
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$6,327
State Income Tax -$2,576
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $64,433
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$13,404
Discretionary Cash Flow $51,029

EPI family budgets put living costs 17.3% lower in Hattiesburg, MS than in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, so $100,000 in Austin goes about as far as $82,700 in Hattiesburg. HUD's one-bedroom Fair Market Rent is $1,530 a month in Austin and $1,117 in Hattiesburg, $4,956 a year less. On the same $100,000 salary a single filer pays $3,268 more a year in federal, state and local income tax and FICA in Hattiesburg. Taxes and one-bedroom rent together leave you about $1,688 a year better off. The BLS median wage across all occupations is $56,950 in Austin and $37,750 in Hattiesburg.

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) Hattiesburg (Monthly) Monthly Delta ($) Difference (%)
Housing (1BR Fair Market Rent)$1,530$1,117-$413-27.0%
Food & Groceries$334$355+$21+6.3%
Transportation$1,062$1,096+$34+3.2%
Healthcare$467$541+$74+15.8%
Other Necessities$585$374-$211-36.1%
Total Taxes (Federal, State, Local, FICA)$1,735$2,007+$272+15.7%

HUD Fair Market Rent Differential

1-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$413/mo (-27.0%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $1,530/mo Hattiesburg: $1,117/mo
2-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$501/mo (-27.6%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $1,817/mo Hattiesburg: $1,316/mo

EPI Living Wage Benchmark Comparison

1 Adult (No Children) -$4.81/hr (-17.3%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $27.77/hr Hattiesburg: $22.96/hr
2 Adults + 1 Child (per earner) -$3.61/hr (-15.2%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $23.78/hr Hattiesburg: $20.17/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 Hattiesburg Median Nominal Wage Delta Action
General and Operations ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$117,850$97,860-$19,990 (-17.0%)View Dossier
Registered Nurse (RN)HealthcareHealthcare$97,890$76,270-$21,620 (-22.1%)View Dossier
Project Management SpecialistBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$102,390$81,710-$20,680 (-20.2%)View Dossier
Accountant & AuditorFinanceFinance$83,120$65,320-$17,800 (-21.4%)View Dossier
Computer and Information Systems ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$176,990$105,200-$71,790 (-40.6%)View Dossier
Solutions ArchitectTechnologyTechnology$129,470$67,620-$61,850 (-47.8%)View Dossier
Sales ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$151,760$86,440-$65,320 (-43.0%)View Dossier
ElectricianSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$60,390$48,580-$11,810 (-19.6%)View Dossier
Financial ManagerFinanceFinance$167,180$104,540-$62,640 (-37.5%)View Dossier
Management AnalystBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$106,600$63,530-$43,070 (-40.4%)View Dossier
Construction ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$102,980$103,940+$960 (+0.9%)View Dossier
Medical and Health Services ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$126,110$94,050-$32,060 (-25.4%)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 Hattiesburg, MS Relocation FAQs

About $82,700. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (125.6 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, 103.8 in Hattiesburg, MS, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Triangular Relocation & Tax Silo

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

Reverse Route: Hattiesburg, MS to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX
Relocation: Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to Hattiesburg, MS Overview

Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to Hattiesburg, MS: 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 Hattiesburg, MS to match $100,000 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX?

About $82,700. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (125.6 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, 103.8 in Hattiesburg, MS, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Is Hattiesburg, MS cheaper than Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX?

EPI's family budgets for a single adult put overall living costs 17.3% lower in Hattiesburg, MS than in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX. The budgets cover housing, food, transportation, health care and other necessities.