2026 Relocation & Cost Arbitrage Engine

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

Popular Corridors:
Equivalent Salary
$120,000
To maintain parity
Cost of Living Delta
+20.0%
Overall expenditure basket
Annual Tax Delta
-$6,211
State + local taxes
Annual 1BR Rent Delta
+$4,152
HUD Fair Market Rents
Net Annual Buffer
-$10,363/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

Vallejo, CA

COL 150.7
Gross Parity Income $120,000
Federal Income Tax -$17,570
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$9,180
State Income Tax -$6,771
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $84,919
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$22,512
Discretionary Cash Flow $62,407

EPI family budgets put living costs 20.0% higher in Vallejo, CA than in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, so $100,000 in Austin goes about as far as $120,000 in Vallejo. HUD's one-bedroom Fair Market Rent is $1,530 a month in Austin and $1,876 in Vallejo, $4,152 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 Vallejo. Taxes and one-bedroom rent together leave you about $10,363 a year worse off. The BLS median wage across all occupations is $56,950 in Austin and $58,620 in Vallejo.

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) Vallejo (Monthly) Monthly Delta ($) Difference (%)
Housing (1BR Fair Market Rent)$1,530$1,876+$346+22.6%
Food & Groceries$334$366+$32+9.6%
Transportation$1,062$1,163+$101+9.5%
Healthcare$467$568+$101+21.6%
Other Necessities$585$649+$64+10.9%
Total Taxes (Federal, State, Local, FICA)$1,735$2,253+$518+29.9%

HUD Fair Market Rent Differential

1-Bedroom Fair Market Rent +$346/mo (22.6%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $1,530/mo Vallejo: $1,876/mo
2-Bedroom Fair Market Rent +$525/mo (28.9%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $1,817/mo Vallejo: $2,342/mo

EPI Living Wage Benchmark Comparison

1 Adult (No Children) +$5.55/hr (20.0%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $27.77/hr Vallejo: $33.32/hr
2 Adults + 1 Child (per earner) +$5.51/hr (23.2%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $23.78/hr Vallejo: $29.29/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 Vallejo Median Nominal Wage Delta Action
General and Operations ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$117,850$114,410-$3,440 (-2.9%)View Dossier
Software EngineerTechnologyTechnology$134,120$136,930+$2,810 (+2.1%)View Dossier
Registered Nurse (RN)HealthcareHealthcare$97,890$203,290+$105,400 (+107.7%)View Dossier
Project Management SpecialistBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$102,390$106,520+$4,130 (+4.0%)View Dossier
Accountant & AuditorFinanceFinance$83,120$95,800+$12,680 (+15.3%)View Dossier
Computer and Information Systems ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$176,990$173,790-$3,200 (-1.8%)View Dossier
Sales ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$151,760$106,530-$45,230 (-29.8%)View Dossier
Solutions ArchitectTechnologyTechnology$129,470$103,480-$25,990 (-20.1%)View Dossier
ElectricianSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$60,390$79,490+$19,100 (+31.6%)View Dossier
Financial ManagerFinanceFinance$167,180$157,530-$9,650 (-5.8%)View Dossier
Marketing ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$164,920$161,560-$3,360 (-2.0%)View Dossier
Management AnalystBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$106,600$103,650-$2,950 (-2.8%)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 Vallejo, CA Relocation FAQs

About $120,000. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (125.6 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, 150.7 in Vallejo, CA, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Triangular Relocation & Tax Silo

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

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

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

About $120,000. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (125.6 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, 150.7 in Vallejo, CA, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

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

EPI's family budgets for a single adult put overall living costs 20.0% higher in Vallejo, CA than in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX. The budgets cover housing, food, transportation, health care and other necessities.