2026 Relocation & Cost Arbitrage Engine

Relocation: Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to Johnstown, PA

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 Johnstown, PA.

Popular Corridors:
Equivalent Salary
$72,100
To maintain parity
Cost of Living Delta
-27.9%
Overall expenditure basket
Annual Tax Delta
-$4,622
State + local taxes
Annual 1BR Rent Delta
-$8,316
HUD Fair Market Rents
Net Annual Buffer
+$3,694/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

Johnstown, PA

COL 90.5
Gross Parity Income $72,100
Federal Income Tax -$7,032
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$5,516
State Income Tax -$2,213
Local / City Tax -$1,134
Net Annual Take-Home $56,205
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$10,044
Discretionary Cash Flow $46,161

EPI family budgets put living costs 27.9% lower in Johnstown, PA than in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, so $100,000 in Austin goes about as far as $72,100 in Johnstown. HUD's one-bedroom Fair Market Rent is $1,530 a month in Austin and $837 in Johnstown, $8,316 a year less. On the same $100,000 salary a single filer pays $4,622 more a year in federal, state and local income tax and FICA in Johnstown. Taxes and one-bedroom rent together leave you about $3,694 a year better off. The BLS median wage across all occupations is $56,950 in Austin and $44,110 in Johnstown.

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) Johnstown (Monthly) Monthly Delta ($) Difference (%)
Housing (1BR Fair Market Rent)$1,530$837-$693-45.3%
Food & Groceries$334$342+$8+2.4%
Transportation$1,062$1,020-$42-4.0%
Healthcare$467$388-$79-16.9%
Other Necessities$585$339-$246-42.1%
Total Taxes (Federal, State, Local, FICA)$1,735$2,120+$385+22.2%

HUD Fair Market Rent Differential

1-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$693/mo (-45.3%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $1,530/mo Johnstown: $837/mo
2-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$803/mo (-44.2%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $1,817/mo Johnstown: $1,014/mo

EPI Living Wage Benchmark Comparison

1 Adult (No Children) -$7.75/hr (-27.9%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $27.77/hr Johnstown: $20.02/hr
2 Adults + 1 Child (per earner) -$6.21/hr (-26.1%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $23.78/hr Johnstown: $17.57/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 Johnstown Median Nominal Wage Delta Action
General and Operations ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$117,850$86,370-$31,480 (-26.7%)View Dossier
Software EngineerTechnologyTechnology$134,120$100,340-$33,780 (-25.2%)View Dossier
Registered Nurse (RN)HealthcareHealthcare$97,890$84,390-$13,500 (-13.8%)View Dossier
Project Management SpecialistBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$102,390$81,070-$21,320 (-20.8%)View Dossier
Accountant & AuditorFinanceFinance$83,120$69,870-$13,250 (-15.9%)View Dossier
Computer and Information Systems ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$176,990$123,750-$53,240 (-30.1%)View Dossier
Solutions ArchitectTechnologyTechnology$129,470$88,980-$40,490 (-31.3%)View Dossier
Sales ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$151,760$85,220-$66,540 (-43.8%)View Dossier
ElectricianSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$60,390$59,390-$1,000 (-1.7%)View Dossier
Financial ManagerFinanceFinance$167,180$102,420-$64,760 (-38.7%)View Dossier
Marketing ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$164,920$113,580-$51,340 (-31.1%)View Dossier
Management AnalystBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$106,600$82,220-$24,380 (-22.9%)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 Johnstown, PA Relocation FAQs

About $72,100. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (125.6 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, 90.5 in Johnstown, PA, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Triangular Relocation & Tax Silo

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

Reverse Route: Johnstown, PA to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX
Relocation: Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to Johnstown, PA Overview

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

About $72,100. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (125.6 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, 90.5 in Johnstown, PA, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Is Johnstown, PA cheaper than Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX?

EPI's family budgets for a single adult put overall living costs 27.9% lower in Johnstown, PA than in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX. The budgets cover housing, food, transportation, health care and other necessities.