2026 Relocation & Cost Arbitrage Engine

Relocation: Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to Springfield, MO

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 Springfield, MO.

Popular Corridors:
Equivalent Salary
$75,700
To maintain parity
Cost of Living Delta
-24.3%
Overall expenditure basket
Annual Tax Delta
-$3,670
State + local taxes
Annual 1BR Rent Delta
-$7,404
HUD Fair Market Rents
Net Annual Buffer
+$3,734/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

Springfield, MO

COL 95.0
Gross Parity Income $75,700
Federal Income Tax -$7,824
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$5,791
State Income Tax -$2,565
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $59,520
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$10,956
Discretionary Cash Flow $48,564

EPI family budgets put living costs 24.3% lower in Springfield, MO than in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, so $100,000 in Austin goes about as far as $75,700 in Springfield. HUD's one-bedroom Fair Market Rent is $1,530 a month in Austin and $913 in Springfield, $7,404 a year less. On the same $100,000 salary a single filer pays $3,670 more a year in federal, state and local income tax and FICA in Springfield. Taxes and one-bedroom rent together leave you about $3,734 a year better off. The BLS median wage across all occupations is $56,950 in Austin and $45,780 in Springfield.

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) Springfield (Monthly) Monthly Delta ($) Difference (%)
Housing (1BR Fair Market Rent)$1,530$913-$617-40.3%
Food & Groceries$334$345+$11+3.3%
Transportation$1,062$1,010-$52-4.9%
Healthcare$467$473+$6+1.3%
Other Necessities$585$352-$233-39.8%
Total Taxes (Federal, State, Local, FICA)$1,735$2,041+$306+17.6%

HUD Fair Market Rent Differential

1-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$617/mo (-40.3%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $1,530/mo Springfield: $913/mo
2-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$704/mo (-38.7%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $1,817/mo Springfield: $1,113/mo

EPI Living Wage Benchmark Comparison

1 Adult (No Children) -$6.76/hr (-24.3%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $27.77/hr Springfield: $21.01/hr
2 Adults + 1 Child (per earner) -$5.30/hr (-22.3%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $23.78/hr Springfield: $18.48/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 Springfield Median Nominal Wage Delta Action
General and Operations ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$117,850$76,290-$41,560 (-35.3%)View Dossier
Software EngineerTechnologyTechnology$134,120$102,350-$31,770 (-23.7%)View Dossier
Registered Nurse (RN)HealthcareHealthcare$97,890$79,370-$18,520 (-18.9%)View Dossier
Project Management SpecialistBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$102,390$78,060-$24,330 (-23.8%)View Dossier
Accountant & AuditorFinanceFinance$83,120$73,020-$10,100 (-12.2%)View Dossier
Computer and Information Systems ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$176,990$135,140-$41,850 (-23.6%)View Dossier
Solutions ArchitectTechnologyTechnology$129,470$76,430-$53,040 (-41.0%)View Dossier
Sales ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$151,760$95,570-$56,190 (-37.0%)View Dossier
ElectricianSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$60,390$56,590-$3,800 (-6.3%)View Dossier
Financial ManagerFinanceFinance$167,180$130,290-$36,890 (-22.1%)View Dossier
Marketing ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$164,920$120,310-$44,610 (-27.0%)View Dossier
Management AnalystBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$106,600$79,310-$27,290 (-25.6%)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 Springfield, MO Relocation FAQs

About $75,700. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (125.6 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, 95.0 in Springfield, MO, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Triangular Relocation & Tax Silo

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

Reverse Route: Springfield, MO to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX
Relocation: Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to Springfield, MO Overview

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

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

About $75,700. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (125.6 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, 95.0 in Springfield, MO, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Is Springfield, MO cheaper than Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX?

EPI's family budgets for a single adult put overall living costs 24.3% lower in Springfield, MO than in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX. The budgets cover housing, food, transportation, health care and other necessities.