2026 Relocation & Cost Arbitrage Engine

Relocation: Austin-Round Rock, TX to Sacramento-Roseville, 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 Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom, CA.

Popular Corridors:
Equivalent Salary
$115,100
To maintain parity
Cost of Living Delta
+15.1%
Overall expenditure basket
Annual Tax Delta
-$6,211
State + local taxes
Annual 1BR Rent Delta
+$3,156
HUD Fair Market Rents
Net Annual Buffer
-$9,367/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

Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom, CA

COL 144.6
Gross Parity Income $115,100
Federal Income Tax -$16,492
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$8,805
State Income Tax -$6,315
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $81,991
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$21,516
Discretionary Cash Flow $60,475

EPI family budgets put living costs 15.1% higher in Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom, CA than in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, so $100,000 in Austin goes about as far as $115,100 in Sacramento. HUD's one-bedroom Fair Market Rent is $1,530 a month in Austin and $1,793 in Sacramento, $3,156 a year more. 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 Sacramento. Taxes and one-bedroom rent together leave you about $9,367 a year worse off. The BLS median wage across all occupations is $56,950 in Austin and $59,750 in Sacramento.

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) Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom (Monthly) Monthly Delta ($) Difference (%)
Housing (1BR Fair Market Rent)$1,530$1,793+$263+17.2%
Food & Groceries$334$384+$50+15.0%
Transportation$1,062$1,044-$18-1.7%
Healthcare$467$577+$110+23.6%
Other Necessities$585$640+$55+9.4%
Total Taxes (Federal, State, Local, FICA)$1,735$2,253+$518+29.9%

HUD Fair Market Rent Differential

1-Bedroom Fair Market Rent +$263/mo (17.2%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $1,530/mo Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom: $1,793/mo
2-Bedroom Fair Market Rent +$384/mo (21.1%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $1,817/mo Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom: $2,201/mo

EPI Living Wage Benchmark Comparison

1 Adult (No Children) +$4.20/hr (15.1%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $27.77/hr Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom: $31.97/hr
2 Adults + 1 Child (per earner) +$5.17/hr (21.7%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $23.78/hr Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom: $28.95/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 Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom Median Nominal Wage Delta Action
General and Operations ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$117,850$118,460+$610 (+0.5%)View Dossier
Registered Nurse (RN)HealthcareHealthcare$97,890$171,460+$73,570 (+75.2%)View Dossier
Software EngineerTechnologyTechnology$134,120$139,640+$5,520 (+4.1%)View Dossier
Management AnalystBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$106,600$82,990-$23,610 (-22.1%)View Dossier
Accountant & AuditorFinanceFinance$83,120$92,110+$8,990 (+10.8%)View Dossier
Project Management SpecialistBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$102,390$124,350+$21,960 (+21.4%)View Dossier
Computer and Information Systems ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$176,990$165,270-$11,720 (-6.6%)View Dossier
Sales ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$151,760$113,980-$37,780 (-24.9%)View Dossier
ElectricianSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$60,390$74,830+$14,440 (+23.9%)View Dossier
Solutions ArchitectTechnologyTechnology$129,470$110,980-$18,490 (-14.3%)View Dossier
Financial ManagerFinanceFinance$167,180$163,090-$4,090 (-2.4%)View Dossier
Medical and Health Services ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$126,110$159,350+$33,240 (+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 Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom, CA Relocation FAQs

About $115,100. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (125.6 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, 144.6 in Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom, CA, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Triangular Relocation & Tax Silo

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

Reverse Route: Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom, CA to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX
Relocation: Austin-Round Rock, TX to Sacramento-Roseville, CA Overview

Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom, CA: 2026 federal, state & local income tax, HUD Fair Market Rents & EPI living costs compared. Official 2026 economic data for Relocation: Austin-Round Rock, TX to Sacramento-Roseville, CA 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 Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom, CA to match $100,000 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX?

About $115,100. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (125.6 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, 144.6 in Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom, CA, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Is Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom, CA cheaper than Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX?

EPI's family budgets for a single adult put overall living costs 15.1% higher in Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom, CA than in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX. The budgets cover housing, food, transportation, health care and other necessities.