2026 Relocation & Cost Arbitrage Engine

Relocation: Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN to St. George, 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 St. George, UT.

Popular Corridors:
Equivalent Salary
$99,100
To maintain parity
Cost of Living Delta
-0.9%
Overall expenditure basket
Annual Tax Delta
+$305
State + local taxes
Annual 1BR Rent Delta
-$6,156
HUD Fair Market Rents
Net Annual Buffer
+$6,461/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

St. George, UT

COL 124.7
Gross Parity Income $99,100
Federal Income Tax -$12,972
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$7,581
State Income Tax -$4,460
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $74,087
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$15,204
Discretionary Cash Flow $58,883

EPI family budgets put living costs 0.9% lower in St. George, UT than in Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN, so $100,000 in Chicago goes about as far as $99,100 in St. George. HUD's one-bedroom Fair Market Rent is $1,780 a month in Chicago and $1,267 in St. George, $6,156 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 St. George. Taxes and one-bedroom rent together leave you about $6,461 a year better off. The BLS median wage across all occupations is $54,720 in Chicago and $45,140 in St. George.

Itemized Cost of Living Expenditure Arbitrage

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

Expenditure Category Chicago-Naperville-Elgin (Monthly) St. George (Monthly) Monthly Delta ($) Difference (%)
Housing (1BR Fair Market Rent)$1,780$1,267-$513-28.8%
Food & Groceries$385$368-$17-4.4%
Transportation$947$1,100+$153+16.2%
Healthcare$416$678+$262+63.0%
Other Necessities$572$470-$102-17.8%
Total Taxes (Federal, State, Local, FICA)$2,135$2,110-$25-1.2%

HUD Fair Market Rent Differential

1-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$513/mo (-28.8%)
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin: $1,780/mo St. George: $1,267/mo
2-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$354/mo (-17.6%)
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin: $2,011/mo St. George: $1,657/mo

EPI Living Wage Benchmark Comparison

1 Adult (No Children) -$0.25/hr (-0.9%)
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin: $27.82/hr St. George: $27.57/hr
2 Adults + 1 Child (per earner) +$0.55/hr (2.3%)
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin: $24.26/hr St. George: $24.81/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 St. George Median Nominal Wage Delta Action
General and Operations ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$109,390$82,850-$26,540 (-24.3%)View Dossier
Registered Nurse (RN)HealthcareHealthcare$100,490$86,380-$14,110 (-14.0%)View Dossier
Accountant & AuditorFinanceFinance$82,360$70,530-$11,830 (-14.4%)View Dossier
Financial ManagerFinanceFinance$168,810$128,990-$39,820 (-23.6%)View Dossier
Software EngineerTechnologyTechnology$134,380$113,240-$21,140 (-15.7%)View Dossier
Management AnalystBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$105,090$67,200-$37,890 (-36.1%)View Dossier
Sales ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$158,690$126,930-$31,760 (-20.0%)View Dossier
Computer and Information Systems ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$173,760$130,510-$43,250 (-24.9%)View Dossier
Quality Control InspectorIndustrial ManufacturingIndustrial Manufacturing$48,230$45,320-$2,910 (-6.0%)View Dossier
Project Management SpecialistBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$105,320$78,300-$27,020 (-25.7%)View Dossier
ElectricianSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$102,350$56,510-$45,840 (-44.8%)View Dossier
Marketing ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$165,340$141,800-$23,540 (-14.2%)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 St. George, UT Relocation FAQs

About $99,100. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (125.8 in Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN, 124.7 in St. George, UT, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Triangular Relocation & Tax Silo

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

Reverse Route: St. George, UT to Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN
Relocation: Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN to St. George, UT Overview

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

About $99,100. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (125.8 in Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN, 124.7 in St. George, UT, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Is St. George, UT cheaper than Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN?

EPI's family budgets for a single adult put overall living costs 0.9% lower in St. George, UT than in Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN. The budgets cover housing, food, transportation, health care and other necessities.