2026 Relocation & Cost Arbitrage Engine

Relocation: Chicago Metro, IL-IN to Davenport-Moline, IA-IL

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 Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN to Davenport-Moline-Rock Island, IA-IL.

Popular Corridors:
Equivalent Salary
$74,900
To maintain parity
Cost of Living Delta
-25.1%
Overall expenditure basket
Annual Tax Delta
+$1,657
State + local taxes
Annual 1BR Rent Delta
-$11,136
HUD Fair Market Rents
Net Annual Buffer
+$12,793/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

Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN

COL 125.8
Gross Annual Income $100,000
Federal Income Tax -$13,170
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$7,650
State Income Tax -$4,805
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $74,375
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$21,360
Discretionary Cash Flow $53,015
Target Market
Destination Location

Davenport-Moline-Rock Island, IA-IL

COL 94.3
Gross Parity Income $74,900
Federal Income Tax -$7,648
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$5,730
State Income Tax -$2,194
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $59,328
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$10,224
Discretionary Cash Flow $49,104

EPI family budgets put living costs 25.1% lower in Davenport-Moline-Rock Island, IA-IL than in Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN, so $100,000 in Chicago goes about as far as $74,900 in Davenport. HUD's one-bedroom Fair Market Rent is $1,780 a month in Chicago and $852 in Davenport, $11,136 a year less. On the same $100,000 salary a single filer pays $1,657 less a year in federal, state and local income tax and FICA in Davenport. Taxes and one-bedroom rent together leave you about $12,793 a year better off. The BLS median wage across all occupations is $54,720 in Chicago and $48,550 in Davenport.

Itemized Cost of Living Expenditure Arbitrage

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

Expenditure Category Chicago-Naperville-Elgin (Monthly) Davenport-Moline-Rock Island (Monthly) Monthly Delta ($) Difference (%)
Housing (1BR Fair Market Rent)$1,780$852-$928-52.1%
Food & Groceries$385$345-$40-10.4%
Transportation$947$1,031+$84+8.9%
Healthcare$416$483+$67+16.1%
Other Necessities$572$327-$245-42.8%
Total Taxes (Federal, State, Local, FICA)$2,135$1,997-$138-6.5%

HUD Fair Market Rent Differential

1-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$928/mo (-52.1%)
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin: $1,780/mo Davenport-Moline-Rock Island: $852/mo
2-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$955/mo (-47.5%)
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin: $2,011/mo Davenport-Moline-Rock Island: $1,056/mo

EPI Living Wage Benchmark Comparison

1 Adult (No Children) -$6.97/hr (-25.1%)
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin: $27.82/hr Davenport-Moline-Rock Island: $20.85/hr
2 Adults + 1 Child (per earner) -$4.08/hr (-16.8%)
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin: $24.26/hr Davenport-Moline-Rock Island: $20.18/hr

Top Local Occupations Wage Parity

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

Occupation Title Industry Sector Chicago-Naperville-Elgin Median Davenport-Moline-Rock Island Median Nominal Wage Delta Action
General and Operations ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$109,390$91,140-$18,250 (-16.7%)View Dossier
Registered Nurse (RN)HealthcareHealthcare$100,490$77,150-$23,340 (-23.2%)View Dossier
Accountant & AuditorFinanceFinance$82,360$77,600-$4,760 (-5.8%)View Dossier
Financial ManagerFinanceFinance$168,810$139,150-$29,660 (-17.6%)View Dossier
Software EngineerTechnologyTechnology$134,380$115,780-$18,600 (-13.8%)View Dossier
Management AnalystBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$105,090$93,530-$11,560 (-11.0%)View Dossier
Sales ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$158,690$128,420-$30,270 (-19.1%)View Dossier
Computer and Information Systems ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$173,760$159,590-$14,170 (-8.2%)View Dossier
Quality Control InspectorIndustrial ManufacturingIndustrial Manufacturing$48,230$51,190+$2,960 (+6.1%)View Dossier
Project Management SpecialistBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$105,320$102,880-$2,440 (-2.3%)View Dossier
ElectricianSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$102,350$76,950-$25,400 (-24.8%)View Dossier
Marketing ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$165,340$141,300-$24,040 (-14.5%)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

Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN to Davenport-Moline-Rock Island, IA-IL Relocation FAQs

About $74,900. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (125.8 in Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN, 94.3 in Davenport-Moline-Rock Island, IA-IL, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Triangular Relocation & Tax Silo

Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN to Davenport-Moline-Rock Island, IA-IL: State Paychecks, Rents & Reciprocal Corridor

Reverse Route: Davenport-Moline-Rock Island, IA-IL to Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN
Relocation: Chicago Metro, IL-IN to Davenport-Moline, IA-IL Overview

Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN to Davenport-Moline-Rock Island, IA-IL: 2026 federal, state & local income tax, HUD Fair Market Rents & EPI living costs. Official 2026 economic data for Relocation: Chicago Metro, IL-IN to Davenport-Moline, IA-IL 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 Davenport-Moline-Rock Island, IA-IL to match $100,000 in Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN?

About $74,900. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (125.8 in Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN, 94.3 in Davenport-Moline-Rock Island, IA-IL, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Is Davenport-Moline-Rock Island, IA-IL cheaper than Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN?

EPI's family budgets for a single adult put overall living costs 25.1% lower in Davenport-Moline-Rock Island, IA-IL than in Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN. The budgets cover housing, food, transportation, health care and other necessities.