2026 Relocation & Cost Arbitrage Engine

Relocation: Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX to Raleigh-Cary, NC

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 Raleigh-Cary, NC.

Popular Corridors:
Equivalent Salary
$110,800
To maintain parity
Cost of Living Delta
+10.8%
Overall expenditure basket
Annual Tax Delta
-$3,481
State + local taxes
Annual 1BR Rent Delta
+$192
HUD Fair Market Rents
Net Annual Buffer
-$3,673/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

Raleigh-Cary, NC

COL 136.2
Gross Parity Income $110,800
Federal Income Tax -$15,546
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$8,476
State Income Tax -$3,912
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $82,866
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$18,624
Discretionary Cash Flow $64,242

EPI family budgets put living costs 10.8% higher in Raleigh-Cary, NC than in Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX, so $100,000 in Dallas goes about as far as $110,800 in Raleigh. HUD's one-bedroom Fair Market Rent is $1,536 a month in Dallas and $1,552 in Raleigh, $192 a year more. On the same $100,000 salary a single filer pays $3,481 more a year in federal, state and local income tax and FICA in Raleigh. Taxes and one-bedroom rent together leave you about $3,673 a year worse off. The BLS median wage across all occupations is $51,440 in Dallas and $51,990 in Raleigh.

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) Raleigh-Cary (Monthly) Monthly Delta ($) Difference (%)
Housing (1BR Fair Market Rent)$1,536$1,552+$16+1.0%
Food & Groceries$342$382+$40+11.7%
Transportation$1,011$1,109+$98+9.7%
Healthcare$459$451-$8-1.7%
Other Necessities$582$595+$13+2.2%
Total Taxes (Federal, State, Local, FICA)$1,735$2,025+$290+16.7%

HUD Fair Market Rent Differential

1-Bedroom Fair Market Rent +$16/mo (1.0%)
Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington: $1,536/mo Raleigh-Cary: $1,552/mo
2-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$118/mo (-6.5%)
Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington: $1,807/mo Raleigh-Cary: $1,689/mo

EPI Living Wage Benchmark Comparison

1 Adult (No Children) +$2.93/hr (10.8%)
Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington: $27.20/hr Raleigh-Cary: $30.13/hr
2 Adults + 1 Child (per earner) +$1.50/hr (6.5%)
Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington: $22.92/hr Raleigh-Cary: $24.42/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 Raleigh-Cary Median Nominal Wage Delta Action
General and Operations ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$111,010$114,940+$3,930 (+3.5%)View Dossier
Registered Nurse (RN)HealthcareHealthcare$101,420$84,830-$16,590 (-16.4%)View Dossier
Software EngineerTechnologyTechnology$133,290$132,770-$520 (-0.4%)View Dossier
Project Management SpecialistBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$98,900$102,280+$3,380 (+3.4%)View Dossier
Accountant & AuditorFinanceFinance$82,620$81,950-$670 (-0.8%)View Dossier
Computer and Information Systems ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$173,810$173,960+$150 (+0.1%)View Dossier
Financial ManagerFinanceFinance$169,200$163,130-$6,070 (-3.6%)View Dossier
Sales ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$144,290$163,520+$19,230 (+13.3%)View Dossier
ElectricianSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$59,010$56,800-$2,210 (-3.7%)View Dossier
Solutions ArchitectTechnologyTechnology$127,360$110,030-$17,330 (-13.6%)View Dossier
Management AnalystBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$102,860$96,820-$6,040 (-5.9%)View Dossier
Construction ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$103,550$119,700+$16,150 (+15.6%)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 Raleigh-Cary, NC Relocation FAQs

About $110,800. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (123.0 in Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX, 136.2 in Raleigh-Cary, NC, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Triangular Relocation & Tax Silo

Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX to Raleigh-Cary, NC: State Paychecks, Rents & Reciprocal Corridor

Reverse Route: Raleigh-Cary, NC to Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX
Relocation: Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX to Raleigh-Cary, NC Overview

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

About $110,800. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (123.0 in Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX, 136.2 in Raleigh-Cary, NC, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Is Raleigh-Cary, NC cheaper than Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX?

EPI's family budgets for a single adult put overall living costs 10.8% higher in Raleigh-Cary, NC than in Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX. The budgets cover housing, food, transportation, health care and other necessities.