2026 Relocation & Cost Arbitrage Engine

Relocation: Crestview Metro, FL to Austin-Round Rock, 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 Crestview-Fort Walton Beach-Destin, FL to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX.

Popular Corridors:
Equivalent Salary
$111,000
To maintain parity
Cost of Living Delta
+11.0%
Overall expenditure basket
Annual Tax Delta
$0
State + local taxes
Annual 1BR Rent Delta
-$2,112
HUD Fair Market Rents
Net Annual Buffer
+$2,112/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

Crestview-Fort Walton Beach-Destin, FL

COL 113.1
Gross Annual Income $100,000
Federal Income Tax -$13,170
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$7,650
State Income Tax -$0
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $79,180
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$20,472
Discretionary Cash Flow $58,708
Target Market
Destination Location

Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX

COL 125.6
Gross Parity Income $111,000
Federal Income Tax -$15,590
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$8,492
State Income Tax $0 (No State Tax)
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $86,919
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$18,360
Discretionary Cash Flow $68,559

EPI family budgets put living costs 11.0% higher in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX than in Crestview-Fort Walton Beach-Destin, FL, so $100,000 in Crestview goes about as far as $111,000 in Austin. HUD's one-bedroom Fair Market Rent is $1,706 a month in Crestview and $1,530 in Austin, $2,112 a year less. On a $100,000 salary a single filer pays the same total tax in both metros. Taxes and one-bedroom rent together leave you about $2,112 a year better off. The BLS median wage across all occupations is $47,510 in Crestview 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 Crestview-Fort Walton Beach-Destin (Monthly) Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos (Monthly) Monthly Delta ($) Difference (%)
Housing (1BR Fair Market Rent)$1,706$1,530-$176-10.3%
Food & Groceries$370$334-$36-9.7%
Transportation$1,048$1,062+$14+1.3%
Healthcare$511$467-$44-8.6%
Other Necessities$493$585+$92+18.7%
Total Taxes (Federal, State, Local, FICA)$1,735$1,735$00.0%

HUD Fair Market Rent Differential

1-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$176/mo (-10.3%)
Crestview-Fort Walton Beach-Destin: $1,706/mo Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $1,530/mo
2-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$91/mo (-4.8%)
Crestview-Fort Walton Beach-Destin: $1,908/mo Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $1,817/mo

EPI Living Wage Benchmark Comparison

1 Adult (No Children) +$2.76/hr (11.0%)
Crestview-Fort Walton Beach-Destin: $25.01/hr Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $27.77/hr
2 Adults + 1 Child (per earner) +$1.56/hr (7.0%)
Crestview-Fort Walton Beach-Destin: $22.22/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 Crestview-Fort Walton Beach-Destin Median Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos Median Nominal Wage Delta Action
General and Operations ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$100,070$117,850+$17,780 (+17.8%)View Dossier
Software EngineerTechnologyTechnology$130,640$134,120+$3,480 (+2.7%)View Dossier
Registered Nurse (RN)HealthcareHealthcare$81,260$97,890+$16,630 (+20.5%)View Dossier
Project Management SpecialistBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$100,180$102,390+$2,210 (+2.2%)View Dossier
Accountant & AuditorFinanceFinance$79,510$83,120+$3,610 (+4.5%)View Dossier
Computer and Information Systems ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$161,140$176,990+$15,850 (+9.8%)View Dossier
Solutions ArchitectTechnologyTechnology$103,130$129,470+$26,340 (+25.5%)View Dossier
Sales ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$125,570$151,760+$26,190 (+20.9%)View Dossier
ElectricianSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$57,200$60,390+$3,190 (+5.6%)View Dossier
Financial ManagerFinanceFinance$145,810$167,180+$21,370 (+14.7%)View Dossier
Management AnalystBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$105,880$106,600+$720 (+0.7%)View Dossier
Marketing ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$155,080$164,920+$9,840 (+6.3%)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

Crestview-Fort Walton Beach-Destin, FL to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX Relocation FAQs

About $111,000. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (113.1 in Crestview-Fort Walton Beach-Destin, FL, 125.6 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Triangular Relocation & Tax Silo

Crestview-Fort Walton Beach-Destin, FL to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX: State Paychecks, Rents & Reciprocal Corridor

Reverse Route: Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to Crestview-Fort Walton Beach-Destin, FL
Relocation: Crestview Metro, FL to Austin-Round Rock, TX Overview

Crestview-Fort Walton Beach-Destin, FL to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX: 2026 federal, state & local income tax, HUD Fair Market Rents & EPI living costs. Official 2026 economic data for Relocation: Crestview Metro, FL to Austin-Round Rock, TX 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 Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to match $100,000 in Crestview-Fort Walton Beach-Destin, FL?

About $111,000. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (113.1 in Crestview-Fort Walton Beach-Destin, FL, 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 Crestview-Fort Walton Beach-Destin, FL?

EPI's family budgets for a single adult put overall living costs 11.0% higher in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX than in Crestview-Fort Walton Beach-Destin, FL. The budgets cover housing, food, transportation, health care and other necessities.