2026 Relocation & Cost Arbitrage Engine

Relocation: Boulder, CO to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, 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 Boulder, CO to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX.

Popular Corridors:
Equivalent Salary
$97,100
To maintain parity
Cost of Living Delta
-2.9%
Overall expenditure basket
Annual Tax Delta
+$3,692
State + local taxes
Annual 1BR Rent Delta
-$2,460
HUD Fair Market Rents
Net Annual Buffer
+$6,152/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

Boulder, CO

COL 129.3
Gross Annual Income $100,000
Federal Income Tax -$13,170
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$7,650
State Income Tax -$3,692
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $75,488
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$20,820
Discretionary Cash Flow $54,668
Target Market
Destination Location

Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX

COL 125.6
Gross Parity Income $97,100
Federal Income Tax -$12,532
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$7,428
State Income Tax $0 (No State Tax)
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $77,140
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$18,360
Discretionary Cash Flow $58,780

EPI family budgets put living costs 2.9% lower in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX than in Boulder, CO, so $100,000 in Boulder goes about as far as $97,100 in Austin. HUD's one-bedroom Fair Market Rent is $1,735 a month in Boulder and $1,530 in Austin, $2,460 a year less. On the same $100,000 salary a single filer pays $3,692 less a year in federal, state and local income tax and FICA in Austin. Taxes and one-bedroom rent together leave you about $6,152 a year better off. The BLS median wage across all occupations is $69,580 in Boulder and $56,950 in Austin.

Itemized Cost of Living Expenditure Arbitrage

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

Expenditure Category Boulder (Monthly) Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos (Monthly) Monthly Delta ($) Difference (%)
Housing (1BR Fair Market Rent)$1,735$1,530-$205-11.8%
Food & Groceries$428$334-$94-22.0%
Transportation$1,034$1,062+$28+2.7%
Healthcare$416$467+$51+12.3%
Other Necessities$588$585-$3-0.5%
Total Taxes (Federal, State, Local, FICA)$2,043$1,735-$308-15.1%

HUD Fair Market Rent Differential

1-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$205/mo (-11.8%)
Boulder: $1,735/mo Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $1,530/mo
2-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$216/mo (-10.6%)
Boulder: $2,033/mo Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $1,817/mo

EPI Living Wage Benchmark Comparison

1 Adult (No Children) -$0.82/hr (-2.9%)
Boulder: $28.59/hr Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $27.77/hr
2 Adults + 1 Child (per earner) -$5.30/hr (-18.2%)
Boulder: $29.08/hr Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $23.78/hr

Top Local Occupations Wage Parity

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

Occupation Title Industry Sector Boulder Median Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos Median Nominal Wage Delta Action
General and Operations ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$152,100$117,850-$34,250 (-22.5%)View Dossier
Software EngineerTechnologyTechnology$164,560$134,120-$30,440 (-18.5%)View Dossier
Registered Nurse (RN)HealthcareHealthcare$103,290$97,890-$5,400 (-5.2%)View Dossier
Project Management SpecialistBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$122,040$102,390-$19,650 (-16.1%)View Dossier
Accountant & AuditorFinanceFinance$99,990$83,120-$16,870 (-16.9%)View Dossier
Computer and Information Systems ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$206,260$176,990-$29,270 (-14.2%)View Dossier
Solutions ArchitectTechnologyTechnology$147,590$129,470-$18,120 (-12.3%)View Dossier
Sales ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$200,970$151,760-$49,210 (-24.5%)View Dossier
Financial ManagerFinanceFinance$192,970$167,180-$25,790 (-13.4%)View Dossier
Marketing ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$199,570$164,920-$34,650 (-17.4%)View Dossier
ElectricianSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$64,120$60,390-$3,730 (-5.8%)View Dossier
Management AnalystBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$131,470$106,600-$24,870 (-18.9%)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

Boulder, CO to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX Relocation FAQs

About $97,100. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (129.3 in Boulder, CO, 125.6 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Triangular Relocation & Tax Silo

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

Reverse Route: Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to Boulder, CO
Relocation: Boulder, CO to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX Overview

Boulder, CO to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX: 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 Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to match $100,000 in Boulder, CO?

About $97,100. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (129.3 in Boulder, CO, 125.6 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Is Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX cheaper than Boulder, CO?

EPI's family budgets for a single adult put overall living costs 2.9% lower in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX than in Boulder, CO. The budgets cover housing, food, transportation, health care and other necessities.