2026 Relocation & Cost Arbitrage Engine

Relocation: Hilton Head Island, SC 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 Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Port Royal, SC to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX.

Popular Corridors:
Equivalent Salary
$109,600
To maintain parity
Cost of Living Delta
+9.6%
Overall expenditure basket
Annual Tax Delta
+$4,244
State + local taxes
Annual 1BR Rent Delta
+$600
HUD Fair Market Rents
Net Annual Buffer
+$3,644/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

Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Port Royal, SC

COL 114.6
Gross Annual Income $100,000
Federal Income Tax -$13,170
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$7,650
State Income Tax -$4,244
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $74,936
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$17,760
Discretionary Cash Flow $57,176
Target Market
Destination Location

Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX

COL 125.6
Gross Parity Income $109,600
Federal Income Tax -$15,282
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$8,384
State Income Tax $0 (No State Tax)
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $85,934
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$18,360
Discretionary Cash Flow $67,574

EPI family budgets put living costs 9.6% higher in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX than in Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Port Royal, SC, so $100,000 in Hilton Head Island goes about as far as $109,600 in Austin. HUD's one-bedroom Fair Market Rent is $1,480 a month in Hilton Head Island and $1,530 in Austin, $600 a year more. On the same $100,000 salary a single filer pays $4,244 less a year in federal, state and local income tax and FICA in Austin. Taxes and one-bedroom rent together leave you about $3,644 a year better off. The BLS median wage across all occupations is $43,850 in Hilton Head Island 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 Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Port Royal (Monthly) Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos (Monthly) Monthly Delta ($) Difference (%)
Housing (1BR Fair Market Rent)$1,480$1,530+$50+3.4%
Food & Groceries$390$334-$56-14.4%
Transportation$1,072$1,062-$10-0.9%
Healthcare$450$467+$17+3.8%
Other Necessities$613$585-$28-4.6%
Total Taxes (Federal, State, Local, FICA)$2,089$1,735-$354-16.9%

HUD Fair Market Rent Differential

1-Bedroom Fair Market Rent +$50/mo (3.4%)
Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Port Royal: $1,480/mo Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $1,530/mo
2-Bedroom Fair Market Rent +$27/mo (1.5%)
Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Port Royal: $1,790/mo Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $1,817/mo

EPI Living Wage Benchmark Comparison

1 Adult (No Children) +$3.97/hr (16.7%)
Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Port Royal: $23.80/hr Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $27.77/hr
2 Adults + 1 Child (per earner) -$21.82/hr (-47.9%)
Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Port Royal: $45.60/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 Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Port Royal Median Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos Median Nominal Wage Delta Action
General and Operations ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$102,770$117,850+$15,080 (+14.7%)View Dossier
Software EngineerTechnologyTechnology$125,760$134,120+$8,360 (+6.6%)View Dossier
Registered Nurse (RN)HealthcareHealthcare$81,400$97,890+$16,490 (+20.3%)View Dossier
Project Management SpecialistBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$79,990$102,390+$22,400 (+28.0%)View Dossier
Accountant & AuditorFinanceFinance$77,610$83,120+$5,510 (+7.1%)View Dossier
Computer and Information Systems ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$144,990$176,990+$32,000 (+22.1%)View Dossier
Solutions ArchitectTechnologyTechnology$96,890$129,470+$32,580 (+33.6%)View Dossier
Sales ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$124,290$151,760+$27,470 (+22.1%)View Dossier
ElectricianSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$57,030$60,390+$3,360 (+5.9%)View Dossier
Financial ManagerFinanceFinance$128,900$167,180+$38,280 (+29.7%)View Dossier
Marketing ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$124,800$164,920+$40,120 (+32.1%)View Dossier
Management AnalystBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$119,430$106,600-$12,830 (-10.7%)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

Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Port Royal, SC to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX Relocation FAQs

About $109,600. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (114.6 in Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Port Royal, SC, 125.6 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Triangular Relocation & Tax Silo

Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Port Royal, SC to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX: State Paychecks, Rents & Reciprocal Corridor

Reverse Route: Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Port Royal, SC
Relocation: Hilton Head Island, SC to Austin-Round Rock, TX Overview

Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Port Royal, SC to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX: 2026 federal, state & local income tax, HUD Fair Market Rents & EPI living. Official 2026 economic data for Relocation: Hilton Head Island, SC 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 Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Port Royal, SC?

About $109,600. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (114.6 in Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Port Royal, SC, 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 Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Port Royal, SC?

EPI's family budgets for a single adult put overall living costs 9.6% higher in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX than in Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Port Royal, SC. The budgets cover housing, food, transportation, health care and other necessities.