2026 Relocation & Cost Arbitrage Engine

Relocation: Burlington, NC 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 Burlington, NC to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX.

Popular Corridors:
Equivalent Salary
$124,900
To maintain parity
Cost of Living Delta
+24.9%
Overall expenditure basket
Annual Tax Delta
+$3,481
State + local taxes
Annual 1BR Rent Delta
+$3,504
HUD Fair Market Rents
Net Annual Buffer
-$23/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

Burlington, NC

COL 100.5
Gross Annual Income $100,000
Federal Income Tax -$13,170
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$7,650
State Income Tax -$3,481
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $75,699
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$14,856
Discretionary Cash Flow $60,843
Target Market
Destination Location

Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX

COL 125.6
Gross Parity Income $124,900
Federal Income Tax -$18,710
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$9,555
State Income Tax $0 (No State Tax)
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $96,635
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$18,360
Discretionary Cash Flow $78,275

EPI family budgets put living costs 24.9% higher in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX than in Burlington, NC, so $100,000 in Burlington goes about as far as $124,900 in Austin. HUD's one-bedroom Fair Market Rent is $1,238 a month in Burlington and $1,530 in Austin, $3,504 a year more. On the same $100,000 salary a single filer pays $3,481 less a year in federal, state and local income tax and FICA in Austin. Taxes and one-bedroom rent together leave you about $23 a year worse off. The BLS median wage across all occupations is $44,010 in Burlington 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 Burlington (Monthly) Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos (Monthly) Monthly Delta ($) Difference (%)
Housing (1BR Fair Market Rent)$1,238$1,530+$292+23.6%
Food & Groceries$350$334-$16-4.6%
Transportation$1,057$1,062+$5+0.5%
Healthcare$446$467+$21+4.7%
Other Necessities$379$585+$206+54.4%
Total Taxes (Federal, State, Local, FICA)$2,025$1,735-$290-14.3%

HUD Fair Market Rent Differential

1-Bedroom Fair Market Rent +$292/mo (23.6%)
Burlington: $1,238/mo Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $1,530/mo
2-Bedroom Fair Market Rent +$469/mo (34.8%)
Burlington: $1,348/mo Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $1,817/mo

EPI Living Wage Benchmark Comparison

1 Adult (No Children) +$5.54/hr (24.9%)
Burlington: $22.23/hr Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $27.77/hr
2 Adults + 1 Child (per earner) +$4.38/hr (22.6%)
Burlington: $19.40/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 Burlington Median Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos Median Nominal Wage Delta Action
General and Operations ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$94,250$117,850+$23,600 (+25.0%)View Dossier
Software EngineerTechnologyTechnology$127,570$134,120+$6,550 (+5.1%)View Dossier
Registered Nurse (RN)HealthcareHealthcare$84,180$97,890+$13,710 (+16.3%)View Dossier
Project Management SpecialistBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$83,370$102,390+$19,020 (+22.8%)View Dossier
Accountant & AuditorFinanceFinance$80,320$83,120+$2,800 (+3.5%)View Dossier
Computer and Information Systems ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$165,490$176,990+$11,500 (+6.9%)View Dossier
Solutions ArchitectTechnologyTechnology$84,030$129,470+$45,440 (+54.1%)View Dossier
Sales ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$129,740$151,760+$22,020 (+17.0%)View Dossier
ElectricianSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$51,400$60,390+$8,990 (+17.5%)View Dossier
Financial ManagerFinanceFinance$134,760$167,180+$32,420 (+24.1%)View Dossier
Marketing ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$164,770$164,920+$150 (+0.1%)View Dossier
Management AnalystBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$96,290$106,600+$10,310 (+10.7%)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

Burlington, NC to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX Relocation FAQs

About $124,900. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (100.5 in Burlington, NC, 125.6 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Triangular Relocation & Tax Silo

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

Reverse Route: Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to Burlington, NC
Relocation: Burlington, NC to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX Overview

Burlington, NC to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, 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 Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to match $100,000 in Burlington, NC?

About $124,900. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (100.5 in Burlington, NC, 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 Burlington, NC?

EPI's family budgets for a single adult put overall living costs 24.9% higher in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX than in Burlington, NC. The budgets cover housing, food, transportation, health care and other necessities.