2026 Relocation & Cost Arbitrage Engine

Relocation: Austin-Round Rock, TX to Olympia-Lacey, WA

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 Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater, WA.

Popular Corridors:
Equivalent Salary
$94,700
To maintain parity
Cost of Living Delta
-5.3%
Overall expenditure basket
Annual Tax Delta
$0
State + local taxes
Annual 1BR Rent Delta
+$1,512
HUD Fair Market Rents
Net Annual Buffer
-$1,512/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

Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater, WA

COL 118.9
Gross Parity Income $94,700
Federal Income Tax -$12,004
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$7,245
State Income Tax $0 (No State Tax)
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $75,451
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$19,872
Discretionary Cash Flow $55,579

EPI family budgets put living costs 5.3% lower in Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater, WA than in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, so $100,000 in Austin goes about as far as $94,700 in Olympia. HUD's one-bedroom Fair Market Rent is $1,530 a month in Austin and $1,656 in Olympia, $1,512 a year more. 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 $1,512 a year worse off. The BLS median wage across all occupations is $56,950 in Austin and $61,960 in Olympia.

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) Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater (Monthly) Monthly Delta ($) Difference (%)
Housing (1BR Fair Market Rent)$1,530$1,656+$126+8.2%
Food & Groceries$334$386+$52+15.6%
Transportation$1,062$1,090+$28+2.6%
Healthcare$467$388-$79-16.9%
Other Necessities$585$552-$33-5.6%
Total Taxes (Federal, State, Local, FICA)$1,735$1,735$00.0%

HUD Fair Market Rent Differential

1-Bedroom Fair Market Rent +$126/mo (8.2%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $1,530/mo Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater: $1,656/mo
2-Bedroom Fair Market Rent +$129/mo (7.1%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $1,817/mo Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater: $1,946/mo

EPI Living Wage Benchmark Comparison

1 Adult (No Children) -$1.48/hr (-5.3%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $27.77/hr Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater: $26.29/hr
2 Adults + 1 Child (per earner) +$0.63/hr (2.6%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $23.78/hr Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater: $24.41/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 Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater Median Nominal Wage Delta Action
General and Operations ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$117,850$122,210+$4,360 (+3.7%)View Dossier
Software EngineerTechnologyTechnology$134,120$124,060-$10,060 (-7.5%)View Dossier
Registered Nurse (RN)HealthcareHealthcare$97,890$125,020+$27,130 (+27.7%)View Dossier
Project Management SpecialistBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$102,390$103,000+$610 (+0.6%)View Dossier
Accountant & AuditorFinanceFinance$83,120$94,470+$11,350 (+13.7%)View Dossier
Computer and Information Systems ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$176,990$140,160-$36,830 (-20.8%)View Dossier
Solutions ArchitectTechnologyTechnology$129,470$100,620-$28,850 (-22.3%)View Dossier
Sales ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$151,760$172,550+$20,790 (+13.7%)View Dossier
Management AnalystBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$106,600$88,790-$17,810 (-16.7%)View Dossier
Financial ManagerFinanceFinance$167,180$142,500-$24,680 (-14.8%)View Dossier
ElectricianSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$60,390$96,600+$36,210 (+60.0%)View Dossier
Marketing ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$164,920$166,790+$1,870 (+1.1%)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 Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater, WA Relocation FAQs

About $94,700. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (125.6 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, 118.9 in Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater, WA, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Triangular Relocation & Tax Silo

Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater, WA: State Paychecks, Rents & Reciprocal Corridor

Reverse Route: Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater, WA to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX
Relocation: Austin-Round Rock, TX to Olympia-Lacey, WA Overview

Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater, WA: 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 Olympia-Lacey, WA 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 Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater, WA to match $100,000 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX?

About $94,700. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (125.6 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, 118.9 in Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater, WA, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Is Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater, WA cheaper than Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX?

EPI's family budgets for a single adult put overall living costs 5.3% lower in Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater, WA than in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX. The budgets cover housing, food, transportation, health care and other necessities.