2026 Relocation & Cost Arbitrage Engine

Relocation: Dallas-Fort Worth, TX to Milwaukee-Waukesha, WI

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 Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX to Milwaukee-Waukesha, WI.

Popular Corridors:
Equivalent Salary
$81,700
To maintain parity
Cost of Living Delta
-18.3%
Overall expenditure basket
Annual Tax Delta
-$4,428
State + local taxes
Annual 1BR Rent Delta
-$5,712
HUD Fair Market Rents
Net Annual Buffer
+$1,284/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

Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX

COL 123.0
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 -$18,432
Discretionary Cash Flow $60,748
Target Market
Destination Location

Milwaukee-Waukesha, WI

COL 100.5
Gross Parity Income $81,700
Federal Income Tax -$9,144
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$6,250
State Income Tax -$3,341
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $62,965
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$12,720
Discretionary Cash Flow $50,245

EPI family budgets put living costs 18.3% lower in Milwaukee-Waukesha, WI than in Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX, so $100,000 in Dallas goes about as far as $81,700 in Milwaukee. HUD's one-bedroom Fair Market Rent is $1,536 a month in Dallas and $1,060 in Milwaukee, $5,712 a year less. On the same $100,000 salary a single filer pays $4,428 more a year in federal, state and local income tax and FICA in Milwaukee. Taxes and one-bedroom rent together leave you about $1,284 a year better off. The BLS median wage across all occupations is $51,440 in Dallas and $51,160 in Milwaukee.

Itemized Cost of Living Expenditure Arbitrage

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

Expenditure Category Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington (Monthly) Milwaukee-Waukesha (Monthly) Monthly Delta ($) Difference (%)
Housing (1BR Fair Market Rent)$1,536$1,060-$476-31.0%
Food & Groceries$342$364+$22+6.4%
Transportation$1,011$951-$60-5.9%
Healthcare$459$457-$2-0.4%
Other Necessities$582$405-$177-30.4%
Total Taxes (Federal, State, Local, FICA)$1,735$2,104+$369+21.3%

HUD Fair Market Rent Differential

1-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$476/mo (-31.0%)
Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington: $1,536/mo Milwaukee-Waukesha: $1,060/mo
2-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$544/mo (-30.1%)
Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington: $1,807/mo Milwaukee-Waukesha: $1,263/mo

EPI Living Wage Benchmark Comparison

1 Adult (No Children) -$4.98/hr (-18.3%)
Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington: $27.20/hr Milwaukee-Waukesha: $22.22/hr
2 Adults + 1 Child (per earner) -$0.59/hr (-2.6%)
Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington: $22.92/hr Milwaukee-Waukesha: $22.33/hr

Top Local Occupations Wage Parity

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

Occupation Title Industry Sector Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington Median Milwaukee-Waukesha Median Nominal Wage Delta Action
General and Operations ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$111,010$125,490+$14,480 (+13.0%)View Dossier
Registered Nurse (RN)HealthcareHealthcare$101,420$97,360-$4,060 (-4.0%)View Dossier
Software EngineerTechnologyTechnology$133,290$123,730-$9,560 (-7.2%)View Dossier
Project Management SpecialistBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$98,900$100,350+$1,450 (+1.5%)View Dossier
Accountant & AuditorFinanceFinance$82,620$80,290-$2,330 (-2.8%)View Dossier
Computer and Information Systems ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$173,810$161,220-$12,590 (-7.2%)View Dossier
Financial ManagerFinanceFinance$169,200$156,100-$13,100 (-7.7%)View Dossier
Sales ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$144,290$144,560+$270 (+0.2%)View Dossier
ElectricianSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$59,010$77,800+$18,790 (+31.8%)View Dossier
Solutions ArchitectTechnologyTechnology$127,360$83,120-$44,240 (-34.7%)View Dossier
Management AnalystBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$102,860$102,900+$40 (0.0%)View Dossier
Quality Control InspectorIndustrial ManufacturingIndustrial Manufacturing$46,210$49,180+$2,970 (+6.4%)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

Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX to Milwaukee-Waukesha, WI Relocation FAQs

About $81,700. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (123.0 in Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX, 100.5 in Milwaukee-Waukesha, WI, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Triangular Relocation & Tax Silo

Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX to Milwaukee-Waukesha, WI: State Paychecks, Rents & Reciprocal Corridor

Reverse Route: Milwaukee-Waukesha, WI to Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX
Relocation: Dallas-Fort Worth, TX to Milwaukee-Waukesha, WI Overview

Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX to Milwaukee-Waukesha, WI: 2026 federal, state & local income tax, HUD Fair Market Rents & EPI living costs compared on. Official 2026 economic data for Relocation: Dallas-Fort Worth, TX to Milwaukee-Waukesha, WI 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 Milwaukee-Waukesha, WI to match $100,000 in Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX?

About $81,700. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (123.0 in Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX, 100.5 in Milwaukee-Waukesha, WI, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Is Milwaukee-Waukesha, WI cheaper than Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX?

EPI's family budgets for a single adult put overall living costs 18.3% lower in Milwaukee-Waukesha, WI than in Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX. The budgets cover housing, food, transportation, health care and other necessities.