2026 Relocation & Cost Arbitrage Engine

Relocation: Boise City, ID to Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX

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 Boise City, ID to Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX.

Popular Corridors:
Equivalent Salary
$88,500
To maintain parity
Cost of Living Delta
-11.5%
Overall expenditure basket
Annual Tax Delta
+$4,192
State + local taxes
Annual 1BR Rent Delta
-$408
HUD Fair Market Rents
Net Annual Buffer
+$4,600/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

Boise City, ID

COL 121.3
Gross Annual Income $100,000
Federal Income Tax -$13,170
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$7,650
State Income Tax -$4,192
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $74,988
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$15,540
Discretionary Cash Flow $59,448
Target Market
Destination Location

Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX

COL 107.4
Gross Parity Income $88,500
Federal Income Tax -$10,640
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$6,770
State Income Tax $0 (No State Tax)
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $71,090
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$15,132
Discretionary Cash Flow $55,958

EPI family budgets put living costs 11.5% lower in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX than in Boise City, ID, so $100,000 in Boise City goes about as far as $88,500 in Houston. HUD's one-bedroom Fair Market Rent is $1,295 a month in Boise City and $1,261 in Houston, $408 a year less. On the same $100,000 salary a single filer pays $4,192 less a year in federal, state and local income tax and FICA in Houston. Taxes and one-bedroom rent together leave you about $4,600 a year better off. The BLS median wage across all occupations is $49,100 in Boise City and $49,410 in Houston.

Itemized Cost of Living Expenditure Arbitrage

Category-by-category breakdown of monthly baseline consumption between origin and destination.

Expenditure Category Boise City (Monthly) Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands (Monthly) Monthly Delta ($) Difference (%)
Housing (1BR Fair Market Rent)$1,295$1,261-$34-2.6%
Food & Groceries$394$321-$73-18.5%
Transportation$1,075$1,015-$60-5.6%
Healthcare$388$422+$34+8.8%
Other Necessities$526$480-$46-8.7%
Total Taxes (Federal, State, Local, FICA)$2,084$1,735-$349-16.7%

HUD Fair Market Rent Differential

1-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$34/mo (-2.6%)
Boise City: $1,295/mo Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands: $1,261/mo
2-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$43/mo (-2.8%)
Boise City: $1,540/mo Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands: $1,497/mo

EPI Living Wage Benchmark Comparison

1 Adult (No Children) -$3.07/hr (-11.4%)
Boise City: $26.82/hr Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands: $23.75/hr
2 Adults + 1 Child (per earner) -$3.35/hr (-14.0%)
Boise City: $23.93/hr Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands: $20.58/hr

Top Local Occupations Wage Parity

BLS median wage comparisons across benchmark roles between both metropolitan labor markets.

Occupation Title Industry Sector Boise City Median Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands Median Nominal Wage Delta Action
General and Operations ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$83,680$119,600+$35,920 (+42.9%)View Dossier
Registered Nurse (RN)HealthcareHealthcare$97,880$99,830+$1,950 (+2.0%)View Dossier
Project Management SpecialistBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$98,580$99,510+$930 (+0.9%)View Dossier
Accountant & AuditorFinanceFinance$76,700$85,090+$8,390 (+10.9%)View Dossier
Software EngineerTechnologyTechnology$131,590$129,440-$2,150 (-1.6%)View Dossier
ElectricianSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$61,610$59,180-$2,430 (-3.9%)View Dossier
Financial ManagerFinanceFinance$131,130$166,910+$35,780 (+27.3%)View Dossier
Industrial Machinery MechanicIndustrial ManufacturingIndustrial Manufacturing$63,620$63,180-$440 (-0.7%)View Dossier
Construction ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$109,990$103,530-$6,460 (-5.9%)View Dossier
Sales ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$141,440$135,880-$5,560 (-3.9%)View Dossier
Quality Control InspectorIndustrial ManufacturingIndustrial Manufacturing$49,820$46,630-$3,190 (-6.4%)View Dossier
WelderSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$50,240$57,940+$7,700 (+15.3%)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

Boise City, ID to Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX Relocation FAQs

About $88,500. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (121.3 in Boise City, ID, 107.4 in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Triangular Relocation & Tax Silo

Boise City, ID to Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX: State Paychecks, Rents & Reciprocal Corridor

Reverse Route: Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX to Boise City, ID
Relocation: Boise City, ID to Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX Overview

Boise City, ID to Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX: 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 Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX to match $100,000 in Boise City, ID?

About $88,500. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (121.3 in Boise City, ID, 107.4 in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Is Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX cheaper than Boise City, ID?

EPI's family budgets for a single adult put overall living costs 11.5% lower in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX than in Boise City, ID. The budgets cover housing, food, transportation, health care and other necessities.