2026 Relocation & Cost Arbitrage Engine

Relocation: Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to Yuma, AZ

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 Yuma, AZ.

Popular Corridors:
Equivalent Salary
$87,900
To maintain parity
Cost of Living Delta
-12.1%
Overall expenditure basket
Annual Tax Delta
-$2,098
State + local taxes
Annual 1BR Rent Delta
-$6,984
HUD Fair Market Rents
Net Annual Buffer
+$4,887/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

Yuma, AZ

COL 110.4
Gross Parity Income $87,900
Federal Income Tax -$10,508
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$6,724
State Income Tax -$1,795
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $68,873
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$11,376
Discretionary Cash Flow $57,497

EPI family budgets put living costs 12.1% lower in Yuma, AZ than in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, so $100,000 in Austin goes about as far as $87,900 in Yuma. HUD's one-bedroom Fair Market Rent is $1,530 a month in Austin and $948 in Yuma, $6,984 a year less. On the same $100,000 salary a single filer pays $2,098 more a year in federal, state and local income tax and FICA in Yuma. Taxes and one-bedroom rent together leave you about $4,887 a year better off. The BLS median wage across all occupations is $56,950 in Austin and $44,170 in Yuma.

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) Yuma (Monthly) Monthly Delta ($) Difference (%)
Housing (1BR Fair Market Rent)$1,530$948-$582-38.0%
Food & Groceries$334$307-$27-8.1%
Transportation$1,062$1,062$00.0%
Healthcare$467$643+$176+37.7%
Other Necessities$585$419-$166-28.4%
Total Taxes (Federal, State, Local, FICA)$1,735$1,910+$175+10.1%

HUD Fair Market Rent Differential

1-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$582/mo (-38.0%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $1,530/mo Yuma: $948/mo
2-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$573/mo (-31.5%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $1,817/mo Yuma: $1,244/mo

EPI Living Wage Benchmark Comparison

1 Adult (No Children) -$3.36/hr (-12.1%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $27.77/hr Yuma: $24.41/hr
2 Adults + 1 Child (per earner) -$1.96/hr (-8.2%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $23.78/hr Yuma: $21.82/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 Yuma Median Nominal Wage Delta Action
General and Operations ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$117,850$79,990-$37,860 (-32.1%)View Dossier
Software EngineerTechnologyTechnology$134,120$121,610-$12,510 (-9.3%)View Dossier
Registered Nurse (RN)HealthcareHealthcare$97,890$94,320-$3,570 (-3.6%)View Dossier
Project Management SpecialistBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$102,390$84,910-$17,480 (-17.1%)View Dossier
Accountant & AuditorFinanceFinance$83,120$76,300-$6,820 (-8.2%)View Dossier
Computer and Information Systems ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$176,990$123,620-$53,370 (-30.2%)View Dossier
Solutions ArchitectTechnologyTechnology$129,470$81,970-$47,500 (-36.7%)View Dossier
Sales ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$151,760$124,500-$27,260 (-18.0%)View Dossier
ElectricianSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$60,390$58,830-$1,560 (-2.6%)View Dossier
Financial ManagerFinanceFinance$167,180$122,730-$44,450 (-26.6%)View Dossier
Marketing ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$164,920$127,570-$37,350 (-22.6%)View Dossier
Management AnalystBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$106,600$84,650-$21,950 (-20.6%)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 Yuma, AZ Relocation FAQs

About $87,900. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (125.6 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, 110.4 in Yuma, AZ, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Triangular Relocation & Tax Silo

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

Reverse Route: Yuma, AZ to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX
Relocation: Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to Yuma, AZ Overview

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

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

About $87,900. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (125.6 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, 110.4 in Yuma, AZ, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Is Yuma, AZ cheaper than Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX?

EPI's family budgets for a single adult put overall living costs 12.1% lower in Yuma, AZ than in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX. The budgets cover housing, food, transportation, health care and other necessities.