2026 Relocation & Cost Arbitrage Engine

Relocation: Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to Lafayette, LA

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 Lafayette, LA.

Popular Corridors:
Equivalent Salary
$76,300
To maintain parity
Cost of Living Delta
-23.7%
Overall expenditure basket
Annual Tax Delta
-$2,614
State + local taxes
Annual 1BR Rent Delta
-$6,708
HUD Fair Market Rents
Net Annual Buffer
+$4,094/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

Lafayette, LA

COL 95.8
Gross Parity Income $76,300
Federal Income Tax -$7,956
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$5,837
State Income Tax -$1,903
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $60,604
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$11,652
Discretionary Cash Flow $48,952

EPI family budgets put living costs 23.7% lower in Lafayette, LA than in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, so $100,000 in Austin goes about as far as $76,300 in Lafayette. HUD's one-bedroom Fair Market Rent is $1,530 a month in Austin and $971 in Lafayette, $6,708 a year less. On the same $100,000 salary a single filer pays $2,614 more a year in federal, state and local income tax and FICA in Lafayette. Taxes and one-bedroom rent together leave you about $4,094 a year better off. The BLS median wage across all occupations is $56,950 in Austin and $41,780 in Lafayette.

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) Lafayette (Monthly) Monthly Delta ($) Difference (%)
Housing (1BR Fair Market Rent)$1,530$971-$559-36.5%
Food & Groceries$334$351+$17+5.1%
Transportation$1,062$1,062$00.0%
Healthcare$467$511+$44+9.4%
Other Necessities$585$339-$246-42.1%
Total Taxes (Federal, State, Local, FICA)$1,735$1,953+$218+12.6%

HUD Fair Market Rent Differential

1-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$559/mo (-36.5%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $1,530/mo Lafayette: $971/mo
2-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$725/mo (-39.9%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $1,817/mo Lafayette: $1,092/mo

EPI Living Wage Benchmark Comparison

1 Adult (No Children) -$6.58/hr (-23.7%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $27.77/hr Lafayette: $21.19/hr
2 Adults + 1 Child (per earner) -$3.83/hr (-16.1%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $23.78/hr Lafayette: $19.95/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 Lafayette Median Nominal Wage Delta Action
General and Operations ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$117,850$99,510-$18,340 (-15.6%)View Dossier
Software EngineerTechnologyTechnology$134,120$109,010-$25,110 (-18.7%)View Dossier
Registered Nurse (RN)HealthcareHealthcare$97,890$81,960-$15,930 (-16.3%)View Dossier
Project Management SpecialistBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$102,390$80,720-$21,670 (-21.2%)View Dossier
Accountant & AuditorFinanceFinance$83,120$67,630-$15,490 (-18.6%)View Dossier
Computer and Information Systems ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$176,990$132,790-$44,200 (-25.0%)View Dossier
Solutions ArchitectTechnologyTechnology$129,470$63,780-$65,690 (-50.7%)View Dossier
Sales ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$151,760$103,460-$48,300 (-31.8%)View Dossier
ElectricianSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$60,390$59,820-$570 (-0.9%)View Dossier
Financial ManagerFinanceFinance$167,180$120,450-$46,730 (-28.0%)View Dossier
Marketing ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$164,920$122,780-$42,140 (-25.6%)View Dossier
Management AnalystBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$106,600$81,730-$24,870 (-23.3%)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 Lafayette, LA Relocation FAQs

About $76,300. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (125.6 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, 95.8 in Lafayette, LA, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Triangular Relocation & Tax Silo

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

Reverse Route: Lafayette, LA to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX
Relocation: Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to Lafayette, LA Overview

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

About $76,300. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (125.6 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, 95.8 in Lafayette, LA, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Is Lafayette, LA cheaper than Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX?

EPI's family budgets for a single adult put overall living costs 23.7% lower in Lafayette, LA than in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX. The budgets cover housing, food, transportation, health care and other necessities.