2026 Relocation & Cost Arbitrage Engine

Relocation: Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to Redding, CA

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 Redding, CA.

Popular Corridors:
Equivalent Salary
$98,600
To maintain parity
Cost of Living Delta
-1.4%
Overall expenditure basket
Annual Tax Delta
-$6,211
State + local taxes
Annual 1BR Rent Delta
-$3,852
HUD Fair Market Rents
Net Annual Buffer
-$2,359/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

Redding, CA

COL 123.8
Gross Parity Income $98,600
Federal Income Tax -$12,862
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$7,543
State Income Tax -$4,781
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $72,133
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$14,508
Discretionary Cash Flow $57,625

EPI family budgets put living costs 1.4% lower in Redding, CA than in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, so $100,000 in Austin goes about as far as $98,600 in Redding. HUD's one-bedroom Fair Market Rent is $1,530 a month in Austin and $1,209 in Redding, $3,852 a year less. On the same $100,000 salary a single filer pays $6,211 more a year in federal, state and local income tax and FICA in Redding. Taxes and one-bedroom rent together leave you about $2,359 a year worse off. The BLS median wage across all occupations is $56,950 in Austin and $48,920 in Redding.

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) Redding (Monthly) Monthly Delta ($) Difference (%)
Housing (1BR Fair Market Rent)$1,530$1,209-$321-21.0%
Food & Groceries$334$376+$42+12.6%
Transportation$1,062$1,114+$52+4.9%
Healthcare$467$707+$240+51.4%
Other Necessities$585$474-$111-19.0%
Total Taxes (Federal, State, Local, FICA)$1,735$2,253+$518+29.9%

HUD Fair Market Rent Differential

1-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$321/mo (-21.0%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $1,530/mo Redding: $1,209/mo
2-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$236/mo (-13.0%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $1,817/mo Redding: $1,581/mo

EPI Living Wage Benchmark Comparison

1 Adult (No Children) -$0.39/hr (-1.4%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $27.77/hr Redding: $27.38/hr
2 Adults + 1 Child (per earner) +$2.29/hr (9.6%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $23.78/hr Redding: $26.07/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 Redding Median Nominal Wage Delta Action
General and Operations ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$117,850$98,510-$19,340 (-16.4%)View Dossier
Software EngineerTechnologyTechnology$134,120$129,230-$4,890 (-3.6%)View Dossier
Registered Nurse (RN)HealthcareHealthcare$97,890$134,350+$36,460 (+37.2%)View Dossier
Project Management SpecialistBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$102,390$99,030-$3,360 (-3.3%)View Dossier
Accountant & AuditorFinanceFinance$83,120$78,990-$4,130 (-5.0%)View Dossier
Computer and Information Systems ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$176,990$162,220-$14,770 (-8.3%)View Dossier
Sales ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$151,760$97,930-$53,830 (-35.5%)View Dossier
Solutions ArchitectTechnologyTechnology$129,470$89,780-$39,690 (-30.7%)View Dossier
ElectricianSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$60,390$69,540+$9,150 (+15.2%)View Dossier
Financial ManagerFinanceFinance$167,180$138,350-$28,830 (-17.2%)View Dossier
Marketing ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$164,920$161,910-$3,010 (-1.8%)View Dossier
Management AnalystBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$106,600$78,480-$28,120 (-26.4%)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 Redding, CA Relocation FAQs

About $98,600. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (125.6 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, 123.8 in Redding, CA, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Triangular Relocation & Tax Silo

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

Reverse Route: Redding, CA to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX
Relocation: Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to Redding, CA Overview

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

About $98,600. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (125.6 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, 123.8 in Redding, CA, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Is Redding, CA cheaper than Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX?

EPI's family budgets for a single adult put overall living costs 1.4% lower in Redding, CA than in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX. The budgets cover housing, food, transportation, health care and other necessities.