2026 Relocation & Cost Arbitrage Engine

Relocation: Austin-Round Rock, TX to Lexington-Fayette, KY

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 Lexington-Fayette, KY.

Popular Corridors:
Equivalent Salary
$77,200
To maintain parity
Cost of Living Delta
-22.8%
Overall expenditure basket
Annual Tax Delta
-$6,132
State + local taxes
Annual 1BR Rent Delta
-$3,900
HUD Fair Market Rents
Net Annual Buffer
-$2,232/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

Lexington-Fayette, KY

COL 96.9
Gross Parity Income $77,200
Federal Income Tax -$8,154
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$5,906
State Income Tax -$2,584
Local / City Tax -$2,123
Net Annual Take-Home $58,433
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$14,460
Discretionary Cash Flow $43,973

EPI family budgets put living costs 22.8% lower in Lexington-Fayette, KY than in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, so $100,000 in Austin goes about as far as $77,200 in Lexington. HUD's one-bedroom Fair Market Rent is $1,530 a month in Austin and $1,205 in Lexington, $3,900 a year less. On the same $100,000 salary a single filer pays $6,132 more a year in federal, state and local income tax and FICA in Lexington. Taxes and one-bedroom rent together leave you about $2,232 a year worse off. The BLS median wage across all occupations is $56,950 in Austin and $48,620 in Lexington.

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) Lexington-Fayette (Monthly) Monthly Delta ($) Difference (%)
Housing (1BR Fair Market Rent)$1,530$1,205-$325-21.2%
Food & Groceries$334$343+$9+2.7%
Transportation$1,062$1,030-$32-3.0%
Healthcare$467$444-$23-4.9%
Other Necessities$585$354-$231-39.5%
Total Taxes (Federal, State, Local, FICA)$1,735$2,246+$511+29.5%

HUD Fair Market Rent Differential

1-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$325/mo (-21.2%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $1,530/mo Lexington-Fayette: $1,205/mo
2-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$401/mo (-22.1%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $1,817/mo Lexington-Fayette: $1,416/mo

EPI Living Wage Benchmark Comparison

1 Adult (No Children) -$6.33/hr (-22.8%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $27.77/hr Lexington-Fayette: $21.44/hr
2 Adults + 1 Child (per earner) -$3.36/hr (-14.1%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $23.78/hr Lexington-Fayette: $20.42/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 Lexington-Fayette Median Nominal Wage Delta Action
General and Operations ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$117,850$80,440-$37,410 (-31.7%)View Dossier
Software EngineerTechnologyTechnology$134,120$123,510-$10,610 (-7.9%)View Dossier
Registered Nurse (RN)HealthcareHealthcare$97,890$79,040-$18,850 (-19.3%)View Dossier
Project Management SpecialistBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$102,390$84,520-$17,870 (-17.5%)View Dossier
Accountant & AuditorFinanceFinance$83,120$77,780-$5,340 (-6.4%)View Dossier
Computer and Information Systems ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$176,990$144,160-$32,830 (-18.5%)View Dossier
Sales ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$151,760$124,860-$26,900 (-17.7%)View Dossier
Solutions ArchitectTechnologyTechnology$129,470$79,610-$49,860 (-38.5%)View Dossier
ElectricianSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$60,390$57,320-$3,070 (-5.1%)View Dossier
Financial ManagerFinanceFinance$167,180$135,760-$31,420 (-18.8%)View Dossier
Marketing ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$164,920$127,040-$37,880 (-23.0%)View Dossier
Management AnalystBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$106,600$99,190-$7,410 (-7.0%)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 Lexington-Fayette, KY Relocation FAQs

About $77,200. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (125.6 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, 96.9 in Lexington-Fayette, KY, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Triangular Relocation & Tax Silo

Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to Lexington-Fayette, KY: State Paychecks, Rents & Reciprocal Corridor

Reverse Route: Lexington-Fayette, KY to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX
Relocation: Austin-Round Rock, TX to Lexington-Fayette, KY Overview

Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to Lexington-Fayette, KY: 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 Lexington-Fayette, KY 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 Lexington-Fayette, KY to match $100,000 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX?

About $77,200. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (125.6 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, 96.9 in Lexington-Fayette, KY, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Is Lexington-Fayette, KY cheaper than Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX?

EPI's family budgets for a single adult put overall living costs 22.8% lower in Lexington-Fayette, KY than in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX. The budgets cover housing, food, transportation, health care and other necessities.