2026 Relocation & Cost Arbitrage Engine

Relocation: Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY to Tampa-St. Petersburg, FL

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 Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY to Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL.

Popular Corridors:
Equivalent Salary
$117,900
To maintain parity
Cost of Living Delta
+17.9%
Overall expenditure basket
Annual Tax Delta
+$4,860
State + local taxes
Annual 1BR Rent Delta
+$5,340
HUD Fair Market Rents
Net Annual Buffer
-$480/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

Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY

COL 105.7
Gross Annual Income $100,000
Federal Income Tax -$13,170
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$7,650
State Income Tax -$4,860
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $74,320
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$14,436
Discretionary Cash Flow $59,884
Target Market
Destination Location

Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL

COL 124.5
Gross Parity Income $117,900
Federal Income Tax -$17,108
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$9,019
State Income Tax $0 (No State Tax)
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $91,773
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$19,776
Discretionary Cash Flow $71,997

EPI family budgets put living costs 17.9% higher in Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL than in Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY, so $100,000 in Buffalo goes about as far as $117,900 in Tampa. HUD's one-bedroom Fair Market Rent is $1,203 a month in Buffalo and $1,648 in Tampa, $5,340 a year more. On the same $100,000 salary a single filer pays $4,860 less a year in federal, state and local income tax and FICA in Tampa. Taxes and one-bedroom rent together leave you about $480 a year worse off. The BLS median wage across all occupations is $50,790 in Buffalo and $48,940 in Tampa.

Itemized Cost of Living Expenditure Arbitrage

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

Expenditure Category Buffalo-Cheektowaga (Monthly) Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater (Monthly) Monthly Delta ($) Difference (%)
Housing (1BR Fair Market Rent)$1,203$1,648+$445+37.0%
Food & Groceries$376$376$00.0%
Transportation$971$950-$21-2.2%
Healthcare$504$472-$32-6.3%
Other Necessities$417$603+$186+44.6%
Total Taxes (Federal, State, Local, FICA)$2,140$1,735-$405-18.9%

HUD Fair Market Rent Differential

1-Bedroom Fair Market Rent +$445/mo (37.0%)
Buffalo-Cheektowaga: $1,203/mo Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater: $1,648/mo
2-Bedroom Fair Market Rent +$494/mo (34.7%)
Buffalo-Cheektowaga: $1,423/mo Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater: $1,917/mo

EPI Living Wage Benchmark Comparison

1 Adult (No Children) +$4.18/hr (17.9%)
Buffalo-Cheektowaga: $23.36/hr Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater: $27.54/hr
2 Adults + 1 Child (per earner) +$0.43/hr (1.9%)
Buffalo-Cheektowaga: $22.99/hr Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater: $23.42/hr

Top Local Occupations Wage Parity

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

Occupation Title Industry Sector Buffalo-Cheektowaga Median Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater Median Nominal Wage Delta Action
Registered Nurse (RN)HealthcareHealthcare$99,060$85,470-$13,590 (-13.7%)View Dossier
General and Operations ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$103,280$103,670+$390 (+0.4%)View Dossier
Accountant & AuditorFinanceFinance$82,120$78,990-$3,130 (-3.8%)View Dossier
Software EngineerTechnologyTechnology$127,850$130,450+$2,600 (+2.0%)View Dossier
Management AnalystBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$84,710$95,840+$11,130 (+13.1%)View Dossier
Project Management SpecialistBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$101,180$97,780-$3,400 (-3.4%)View Dossier
Financial ManagerFinanceFinance$164,230$157,480-$6,750 (-4.1%)View Dossier
ElectricianSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$77,930$57,450-$20,480 (-26.3%)View Dossier
Medical and Health Services ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$132,720$124,980-$7,740 (-5.8%)View Dossier
Sales ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$163,090$132,010-$31,080 (-19.1%)View Dossier
Computer and Information Systems ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$172,650$168,470-$4,180 (-2.4%)View Dossier
HVAC/R TechnicianSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$62,180$50,540-$11,640 (-18.7%)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

Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY to Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL Relocation FAQs

About $117,900. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (105.7 in Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY, 124.5 in Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Triangular Relocation & Tax Silo

Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY to Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL: State Paychecks, Rents & Reciprocal Corridor

Reverse Route: Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL to Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY
Relocation: Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY to Tampa-St. Petersburg, FL Overview

Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY to Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL: 2026 federal, state & local income tax, HUD Fair Market Rents & EPI living costs compared on. Official 2026 economic data for Relocation: Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY to Tampa-St. Petersburg, FL 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 Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL to match $100,000 in Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY?

About $117,900. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (105.7 in Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY, 124.5 in Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Is Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL cheaper than Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY?

EPI's family budgets for a single adult put overall living costs 17.9% higher in Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL than in Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY. The budgets cover housing, food, transportation, health care and other necessities.