2026 Relocation & Cost Arbitrage Engine

Relocation: Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to Midland, MI

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 Midland, MI.

Popular Corridors:
Equivalent Salary
$79,700
To maintain parity
Cost of Living Delta
-20.3%
Overall expenditure basket
Annual Tax Delta
-$3,999
State + local taxes
Annual 1BR Rent Delta
-$7,128
HUD Fair Market Rents
Net Annual Buffer
+$3,129/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

Midland, MI

COL 100.1
Gross Parity Income $79,700
Federal Income Tax -$8,704
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$6,097
State Income Tax -$3,137
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $61,762
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$11,232
Discretionary Cash Flow $50,530

EPI family budgets put living costs 20.3% lower in Midland, MI than in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, so $100,000 in Austin goes about as far as $79,700 in Midland. HUD's one-bedroom Fair Market Rent is $1,530 a month in Austin and $936 in Midland, $7,128 a year less. On the same $100,000 salary a single filer pays $3,999 more a year in federal, state and local income tax and FICA in Midland. Taxes and one-bedroom rent together leave you about $3,129 a year better off. The BLS median wage across all occupations is $56,950 in Austin and $49,340 in Midland.

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) Midland (Monthly) Monthly Delta ($) Difference (%)
Housing (1BR Fair Market Rent)$1,530$936-$594-38.8%
Food & Groceries$334$337+$3+0.9%
Transportation$1,062$1,080+$18+1.7%
Healthcare$467$482+$15+3.2%
Other Necessities$585$375-$210-35.9%
Total Taxes (Federal, State, Local, FICA)$1,735$2,068+$333+19.2%

HUD Fair Market Rent Differential

1-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$594/mo (-38.8%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $1,530/mo Midland: $936/mo
2-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$612/mo (-33.7%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $1,817/mo Midland: $1,205/mo

EPI Living Wage Benchmark Comparison

1 Adult (No Children) -$5.63/hr (-20.3%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $27.77/hr Midland: $22.14/hr
2 Adults + 1 Child (per earner) -$3.46/hr (-14.6%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $23.78/hr Midland: $20.32/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 Midland Median Nominal Wage Delta Action
General and Operations ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$117,850$98,270-$19,580 (-16.6%)View Dossier
Software EngineerTechnologyTechnology$134,120$83,730-$50,390 (-37.6%)View Dossier
Registered Nurse (RN)HealthcareHealthcare$97,890$86,360-$11,530 (-11.8%)View Dossier
Project Management SpecialistBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$102,390$100,190-$2,200 (-2.1%)View Dossier
Accountant & AuditorFinanceFinance$83,120$91,790+$8,670 (+10.4%)View Dossier
Solutions ArchitectTechnologyTechnology$129,470$102,280-$27,190 (-21.0%)View Dossier
Sales ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$151,760$128,280-$23,480 (-15.5%)View Dossier
ElectricianSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$60,390$51,310-$9,080 (-15.0%)View Dossier
Financial ManagerFinanceFinance$167,180$173,080+$5,900 (+3.5%)View Dossier
Management AnalystBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$106,600$99,590-$7,010 (-6.6%)View Dossier
Construction ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$102,980$95,540-$7,440 (-7.2%)View Dossier
Medical and Health Services ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$126,110$112,320-$13,790 (-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 Midland, MI Relocation FAQs

About $79,700. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (125.6 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, 100.1 in Midland, MI, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Triangular Relocation & Tax Silo

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

Reverse Route: Midland, MI to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX
Relocation: Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to Midland, MI Overview

Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to Midland, MI: 2026 federal, state & local income tax, HUD Fair Market Rents & EPI living costs compared on the same salary.

Quick answers
How much salary do I need in Midland, MI to match $100,000 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX?

About $79,700. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (125.6 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, 100.1 in Midland, MI, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Is Midland, MI cheaper than Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX?

EPI's family budgets for a single adult put overall living costs 20.3% lower in Midland, MI than in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX. The budgets cover housing, food, transportation, health care and other necessities.