2026 Relocation & Cost Arbitrage Engine

Relocation: Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to Memphis, TN-MS-AR

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 Memphis, TN-MS-AR.

Popular Corridors:
Equivalent Salary
$85,100
To maintain parity
Cost of Living Delta
-14.9%
Overall expenditure basket
Annual Tax Delta
$0
State + local taxes
Annual 1BR Rent Delta
-$4,068
HUD Fair Market Rents
Net Annual Buffer
+$4,068/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

Memphis, TN-MS-AR

COL 106.9
Gross Parity Income $85,100
Federal Income Tax -$9,892
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$6,510
State Income Tax $0 (No State Tax)
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $68,698
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$14,292
Discretionary Cash Flow $54,406

EPI family budgets put living costs 14.9% lower in Memphis, TN-MS-AR than in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, so $100,000 in Austin goes about as far as $85,100 in Memphis. HUD's one-bedroom Fair Market Rent is $1,530 a month in Austin and $1,191 in Memphis, $4,068 a year less. On a $100,000 salary a single filer pays the same total tax in both metros. Taxes and one-bedroom rent together leave you about $4,068 a year better off. The BLS median wage across all occupations is $56,950 in Austin and $46,890 in Memphis.

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) Memphis (Monthly) Monthly Delta ($) Difference (%)
Housing (1BR Fair Market Rent)$1,530$1,191-$339-22.2%
Food & Groceries$334$362+$28+8.4%
Transportation$1,062$1,039-$23-2.2%
Healthcare$467$487+$20+4.3%
Other Necessities$585$456-$129-22.1%
Total Taxes (Federal, State, Local, FICA)$1,735$1,735$00.0%

HUD Fair Market Rent Differential

1-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$339/mo (-22.2%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $1,530/mo Memphis: $1,191/mo
2-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$516/mo (-28.4%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $1,817/mo Memphis: $1,301/mo

EPI Living Wage Benchmark Comparison

1 Adult (No Children) -$4.13/hr (-14.9%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $27.77/hr Memphis: $23.64/hr
2 Adults + 1 Child (per earner) -$3.41/hr (-14.3%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $23.78/hr Memphis: $20.37/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 Memphis Median Nominal Wage Delta Action
General and Operations ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$117,850$102,510-$15,340 (-13.0%)View Dossier
Software EngineerTechnologyTechnology$134,120$125,580-$8,540 (-6.4%)View Dossier
Registered Nurse (RN)HealthcareHealthcare$97,890$81,500-$16,390 (-16.7%)View Dossier
Project Management SpecialistBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$102,390$85,130-$17,260 (-16.9%)View Dossier
Accountant & AuditorFinanceFinance$83,120$76,960-$6,160 (-7.4%)View Dossier
Computer and Information Systems ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$176,990$161,790-$15,200 (-8.6%)View Dossier
Solutions ArchitectTechnologyTechnology$129,470$81,690-$47,780 (-36.9%)View Dossier
Sales ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$151,760$128,560-$23,200 (-15.3%)View Dossier
ElectricianSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$60,390$60,890+$500 (+0.8%)View Dossier
Financial ManagerFinanceFinance$167,180$143,880-$23,300 (-13.9%)View Dossier
Marketing ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$164,920$132,540-$32,380 (-19.6%)View Dossier
Management AnalystBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$106,600$94,980-$11,620 (-10.9%)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 Memphis, TN-MS-AR Relocation FAQs

About $85,100. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (125.6 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, 106.9 in Memphis, TN-MS-AR, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Triangular Relocation & Tax Silo

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

Reverse Route: Memphis, TN-MS-AR to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX
Relocation: Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to Memphis, TN-MS-AR Overview

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

About $85,100. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (125.6 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, 106.9 in Memphis, TN-MS-AR, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Is Memphis, TN-MS-AR cheaper than Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX?

EPI's family budgets for a single adult put overall living costs 14.9% lower in Memphis, TN-MS-AR than in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX. The budgets cover housing, food, transportation, health care and other necessities.