2026 Relocation & Cost Arbitrage Engine

Relocation: Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN to Ogden, UT

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 Ogden, UT.

Popular Corridors:
Equivalent Salary
$96,400
To maintain parity
Cost of Living Delta
-3.6%
Overall expenditure basket
Annual Tax Delta
+$305
State + local taxes
Annual 1BR Rent Delta
-$6,348
HUD Fair Market Rents
Net Annual Buffer
+$6,653/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

Ogden, UT

COL 121.2
Gross Parity Income $96,400
Federal Income Tax -$12,378
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$7,375
State Income Tax -$4,338
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $72,309
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$15,012
Discretionary Cash Flow $57,297

EPI family budgets put living costs 3.6% lower in Ogden, UT than in Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN, so $100,000 in Chicago goes about as far as $96,400 in Ogden. HUD's one-bedroom Fair Market Rent is $1,780 a month in Chicago and $1,251 in Ogden, $6,348 a year less. On the same $100,000 salary a single filer pays $305 less a year in federal, state and local income tax and FICA in Ogden. Taxes and one-bedroom rent together leave you about $6,653 a year better off. The BLS median wage across all occupations is $54,720 in Chicago and $48,900 in Ogden.

Itemized Cost of Living Expenditure Arbitrage

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

Expenditure Category Chicago-Naperville-Elgin (Monthly) Ogden (Monthly) Monthly Delta ($) Difference (%)
Housing (1BR Fair Market Rent)$1,780$1,251-$529-29.7%
Food & Groceries$385$351-$34-8.8%
Transportation$947$1,197+$250+26.4%
Healthcare$416$502+$86+20.7%
Other Necessities$572$469-$103-18.0%
Total Taxes (Federal, State, Local, FICA)$2,135$2,110-$25-1.2%

HUD Fair Market Rent Differential

1-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$529/mo (-29.7%)
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin: $1,780/mo Ogden: $1,251/mo
2-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$420/mo (-20.9%)
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin: $2,011/mo Ogden: $1,591/mo

EPI Living Wage Benchmark Comparison

1 Adult (No Children) -$1.01/hr (-3.6%)
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin: $27.82/hr Ogden: $26.81/hr
2 Adults + 1 Child (per earner) -$0.95/hr (-3.9%)
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin: $24.26/hr Ogden: $23.31/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 Ogden Median Nominal Wage Delta Action
General and Operations ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$109,390$93,610-$15,780 (-14.4%)View Dossier
Registered Nurse (RN)HealthcareHealthcare$100,490$81,840-$18,650 (-18.6%)View Dossier
Software EngineerTechnologyTechnology$134,380$109,880-$24,500 (-18.2%)View Dossier
Accountant & AuditorFinanceFinance$82,360$82,010-$350 (-0.4%)View Dossier
Financial ManagerFinanceFinance$168,810$135,300-$33,510 (-19.9%)View Dossier
Management AnalystBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$105,090$91,560-$13,530 (-12.9%)View Dossier
Sales ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$158,690$131,320-$27,370 (-17.2%)View Dossier
Computer and Information Systems ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$173,760$162,710-$11,050 (-6.4%)View Dossier
Quality Control InspectorIndustrial ManufacturingIndustrial Manufacturing$48,230$52,800+$4,570 (+9.5%)View Dossier
Project Management SpecialistBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$105,320$104,360-$960 (-0.9%)View Dossier
ElectricianSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$102,350$62,030-$40,320 (-39.4%)View Dossier
Marketing ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$165,340$124,810-$40,530 (-24.5%)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 Ogden, UT Relocation FAQs

About $96,400. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (125.8 in Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN, 121.2 in Ogden, UT, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Triangular Relocation & Tax Silo

Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN to Ogden, UT: State Paychecks, Rents & Reciprocal Corridor

Reverse Route: Ogden, UT to Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN
Relocation: Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN to Ogden, UT Overview

Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN to Ogden, UT: 2026 federal, state and local income tax, HUD Fair Market Rents and EPI living costs compared on the same salary. Official 2026 economic data for Relocation: Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN to Ogden, UT 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 Ogden, UT to match $100,000 in Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN?

About $96,400. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (125.8 in Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN, 121.2 in Ogden, UT, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Is Ogden, UT cheaper than Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN?

EPI's family budgets for a single adult put overall living costs 3.6% lower in Ogden, UT than in Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN. The budgets cover housing, food, transportation, health care and other necessities.