2026 Relocation & Cost Arbitrage Engine

Relocation: Austin-Round Rock, TX to Scranton-Wilkes, PA

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 Scranton--Wilkes-Barre, PA.

Popular Corridors:
Equivalent Salary
$74,200
To maintain parity
Cost of Living Delta
-25.8%
Overall expenditure basket
Annual Tax Delta
-$6,626
State + local taxes
Annual 1BR Rent Delta
-$5,088
HUD Fair Market Rents
Net Annual Buffer
-$1,538/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

Scranton--Wilkes-Barre, PA

COL 93.1
Gross Parity Income $74,200
Federal Income Tax -$7,494
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$5,676
State Income Tax -$2,278
Local / City Tax -$2,679
Net Annual Take-Home $56,073
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$13,272
Discretionary Cash Flow $42,801

EPI family budgets put living costs 25.8% lower in Scranton--Wilkes-Barre, PA than in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, so $100,000 in Austin goes about as far as $74,200 in Scranton. HUD's one-bedroom Fair Market Rent is $1,530 a month in Austin and $1,106 in Scranton, $5,088 a year less. On the same $100,000 salary a single filer pays $6,626 more a year in federal, state and local income tax and FICA in Scranton. Taxes and one-bedroom rent together leave you about $1,538 a year worse off. The BLS median wage across all occupations is $56,950 in Austin and $46,330 in Scranton.

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) Scranton--Wilkes-Barre (Monthly) Monthly Delta ($) Difference (%)
Housing (1BR Fair Market Rent)$1,530$1,106-$424-27.7%
Food & Groceries$334$350+$16+4.8%
Transportation$1,062$1,012-$50-4.7%
Healthcare$467$424-$43-9.2%
Other Necessities$585$351-$234-40.0%
Total Taxes (Federal, State, Local, FICA)$1,735$2,287+$552+31.8%

HUD Fair Market Rent Differential

1-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$424/mo (-27.7%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $1,530/mo Scranton--Wilkes-Barre: $1,106/mo
2-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$454/mo (-25.0%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $1,817/mo Scranton--Wilkes-Barre: $1,363/mo

EPI Living Wage Benchmark Comparison

1 Adult (No Children) -$7.17/hr (-25.8%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $27.77/hr Scranton--Wilkes-Barre: $20.60/hr
2 Adults + 1 Child (per earner) -$4.00/hr (-16.8%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $23.78/hr Scranton--Wilkes-Barre: $19.78/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 Scranton--Wilkes-Barre Median Nominal Wage Delta Action
General and Operations ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$117,850$93,820-$24,030 (-20.4%)View Dossier
Software EngineerTechnologyTechnology$134,120$119,960-$14,160 (-10.6%)View Dossier
Registered Nurse (RN)HealthcareHealthcare$97,890$82,650-$15,240 (-15.6%)View Dossier
Project Management SpecialistBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$102,390$91,820-$10,570 (-10.3%)View Dossier
Accountant & AuditorFinanceFinance$83,120$70,480-$12,640 (-15.2%)View Dossier
Computer and Information Systems ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$176,990$135,700-$41,290 (-23.3%)View Dossier
Sales ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$151,760$116,120-$35,640 (-23.5%)View Dossier
Solutions ArchitectTechnologyTechnology$129,470$93,830-$35,640 (-27.5%)View Dossier
ElectricianSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$60,390$69,540+$9,150 (+15.2%)View Dossier
Financial ManagerFinanceFinance$167,180$124,920-$42,260 (-25.3%)View Dossier
Marketing ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$164,920$127,000-$37,920 (-23.0%)View Dossier
Management AnalystBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$106,600$93,150-$13,450 (-12.6%)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 Scranton--Wilkes-Barre, PA Relocation FAQs

About $74,200. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (125.6 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, 93.1 in Scranton--Wilkes-Barre, PA, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Triangular Relocation & Tax Silo

Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to Scranton--Wilkes-Barre, PA: State Paychecks, Rents & Reciprocal Corridor

Reverse Route: Scranton--Wilkes-Barre, PA to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX
Relocation: Austin-Round Rock, TX to Scranton-Wilkes, PA Overview

Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to Scranton--Wilkes-Barre, PA: 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 Scranton-Wilkes, PA 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 Scranton--Wilkes-Barre, PA to match $100,000 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX?

About $74,200. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (125.6 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, 93.1 in Scranton--Wilkes-Barre, PA, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Is Scranton--Wilkes-Barre, PA cheaper than Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX?

EPI's family budgets for a single adult put overall living costs 25.8% lower in Scranton--Wilkes-Barre, PA than in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX. The budgets cover housing, food, transportation, health care and other necessities.