2026 Relocation & Cost Arbitrage Engine

Relocation: Boston-Newton, MA to New York-Newark, NY-NJ

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 Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH to New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ.

Popular Corridors:
Equivalent Salary
$111,300
To maintain parity
Cost of Living Delta
+11.3%
Overall expenditure basket
Annual Tax Delta
-$3,521
State + local taxes
Annual 1BR Rent Delta
+$2,532
HUD Fair Market Rents
Net Annual Buffer
-$6,053/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

Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH

COL 162.7
Gross Annual Income $100,000
Federal Income Tax -$13,170
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$7,650
State Income Tax -$4,780
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $74,400
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$30,216
Discretionary Cash Flow $44,184
Target Market
Destination Location

New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ

COL 181.0
Gross Parity Income $111,300
Federal Income Tax -$15,656
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$8,514
State Income Tax -$5,568
Local / City Tax -$3,879
Net Annual Take-Home $77,683
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$32,748
Discretionary Cash Flow $44,935

EPI family budgets put living costs 11.3% higher in New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ than in Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH, so $100,000 in Boston goes about as far as $111,300 in New York. HUD's one-bedroom Fair Market Rent is $2,518 a month in Boston and $2,729 in New York, $2,532 a year more. On the same $100,000 salary a single filer pays $3,521 more a year in federal, state and local income tax and FICA in New York. Taxes and one-bedroom rent together leave you about $6,053 a year worse off. The BLS median wage across all occupations is $66,620 in Boston and $61,430 in New York.

Itemized Cost of Living Expenditure Arbitrage

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

Expenditure Category Boston-Cambridge-Newton (Monthly) New York-Newark-Jersey City (Monthly) Monthly Delta ($) Difference (%)
Housing (1BR Fair Market Rent)$2,518$2,729+$211+8.4%
Food & Groceries$418$426+$8+1.9%
Transportation$1,080$693-$387-35.8%
Healthcare$413$748+$335+81.1%
Other Necessities$832$879+$47+5.6%
Total Taxes (Federal, State, Local, FICA)$2,133$2,427+$294+13.8%

HUD Fair Market Rent Differential

1-Bedroom Fair Market Rent +$211/mo (8.4%)
Boston-Cambridge-Newton: $2,518/mo New York-Newark-Jersey City: $2,729/mo
2-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$37/mo (-1.2%)
Boston-Cambridge-Newton: $3,008/mo New York-Newark-Jersey City: $2,971/mo

EPI Living Wage Benchmark Comparison

1 Adult (No Children) +$4.06/hr (11.3%)
Boston-Cambridge-Newton: $35.97/hr New York-Newark-Jersey City: $40.03/hr
2 Adults + 1 Child (per earner) +$2.76/hr (8.8%)
Boston-Cambridge-Newton: $31.43/hr New York-Newark-Jersey City: $34.19/hr

Top Local Occupations Wage Parity

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

Occupation Title Industry Sector Boston-Cambridge-Newton Median New York-Newark-Jersey City Median Nominal Wage Delta Action
Registered Nurse (RN)HealthcareHealthcare$106,180$119,720+$13,540 (+12.8%)View Dossier
General and Operations ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$133,800$157,000+$23,200 (+17.3%)View Dossier
Software EngineerTechnologyTechnology$166,090$166,830+$740 (+0.4%)View Dossier
Accountant & AuditorFinanceFinance$100,150$105,650+$5,500 (+5.5%)View Dossier
Financial ManagerFinanceFinance$209,780$221,010+$11,230 (+5.4%)View Dossier
Management AnalystBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$135,640$124,390-$11,250 (-8.3%)View Dossier
Project Management SpecialistBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$114,990$126,660+$11,670 (+10.1%)View Dossier
Computer and Information Systems ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$214,960$215,300+$340 (+0.2%)View Dossier
Financial AnalystFinanceFinance$117,520$128,930+$11,410 (+9.7%)View Dossier
Marketing ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$213,910$192,840-$21,070 (-9.8%)View Dossier
Sales ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$206,610$215,150+$8,540 (+4.1%)View Dossier
ElectricianSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$79,910$79,020-$890 (-1.1%)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

Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH to New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ Relocation FAQs

About $111,300. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (162.7 in Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH, 181.0 in New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Triangular Relocation & Tax Silo

Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH to New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ: State Paychecks, Rents & Reciprocal Corridor

Reverse Route: New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ to Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH
Relocation: Boston-Newton, MA to New York-Newark, NY-NJ Overview

Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH to New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ: 2026 federal, state & local income tax, HUD Fair Market Rents & EPI living costs compared. Official 2026 economic data for Relocation: Boston-Newton, MA to New York-Newark, NY-NJ 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 New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ to match $100,000 in Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH?

About $111,300. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (162.7 in Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH, 181.0 in New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Is New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ cheaper than Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH?

EPI's family budgets for a single adult put overall living costs 11.3% higher in New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ than in Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH. The budgets cover housing, food, transportation, health care and other necessities.