2026 Relocation & Cost Arbitrage Engine

Relocation: Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX to Casper, WY

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 Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX to Casper, WY.

Popular Corridors:
Equivalent Salary
$93,600
To maintain parity
Cost of Living Delta
-6.4%
Overall expenditure basket
Annual Tax Delta
$0
State + local taxes
Annual 1BR Rent Delta
-$5,484
HUD Fair Market Rents
Net Annual Buffer
+$5,484/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

Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX

COL 107.4
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 -$15,132
Discretionary Cash Flow $64,048
Target Market
Destination Location

Casper, WY

COL 100.5
Gross Parity Income $93,600
Federal Income Tax -$11,762
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$7,160
State Income Tax $0 (No State Tax)
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $74,678
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$9,648
Discretionary Cash Flow $65,030

EPI family budgets put living costs 6.4% lower in Casper, WY than in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX, so $100,000 in Houston goes about as far as $93,600 in Casper. HUD's one-bedroom Fair Market Rent is $1,261 a month in Houston and $804 in Casper, $5,484 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 $5,484 a year better off. The BLS median wage across all occupations is $49,410 in Houston and $48,880 in Casper.

Itemized Cost of Living Expenditure Arbitrage

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

Expenditure Category Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands (Monthly) Casper (Monthly) Monthly Delta ($) Difference (%)
Housing (1BR Fair Market Rent)$1,261$804-$457-36.2%
Food & Groceries$321$342+$21+6.5%
Transportation$1,015$1,076+$61+6.0%
Healthcare$422$740+$318+75.4%
Other Necessities$480$341-$139-29.0%
Total Taxes (Federal, State, Local, FICA)$1,735$1,735$00.0%

HUD Fair Market Rent Differential

1-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$457/mo (-36.2%)
Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands: $1,261/mo Casper: $804/mo
2-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$452/mo (-30.2%)
Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands: $1,497/mo Casper: $1,045/mo

EPI Living Wage Benchmark Comparison

1 Adult (No Children) -$1.52/hr (-6.4%)
Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands: $23.75/hr Casper: $22.23/hr
2 Adults + 1 Child (per earner) +$1.13/hr (5.5%)
Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands: $20.58/hr Casper: $21.71/hr

Top Local Occupations Wage Parity

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

Occupation Title Industry Sector Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands Median Casper Median Nominal Wage Delta Action
General and Operations ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$119,600$101,450-$18,150 (-15.2%)View Dossier
Registered Nurse (RN)HealthcareHealthcare$99,830$83,760-$16,070 (-16.1%)View Dossier
Project Management SpecialistBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$99,510$98,910-$600 (-0.6%)View Dossier
Accountant & AuditorFinanceFinance$85,090$83,890-$1,200 (-1.4%)View Dossier
Software EngineerTechnologyTechnology$129,440$103,000-$26,440 (-20.4%)View Dossier
ElectricianSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$59,180$69,640+$10,460 (+17.7%)View Dossier
Industrial Machinery MechanicIndustrial ManufacturingIndustrial Manufacturing$63,180$65,130+$1,950 (+3.1%)View Dossier
Financial ManagerFinanceFinance$166,910$129,430-$37,480 (-22.5%)View Dossier
Quality Control InspectorIndustrial ManufacturingIndustrial Manufacturing$46,630$56,200+$9,570 (+20.5%)View Dossier
Construction ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$103,530$94,250-$9,280 (-9.0%)View Dossier
Sales ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$135,880$129,670-$6,210 (-4.6%)View Dossier
WelderSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$57,940$62,660+$4,720 (+8.1%)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

Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX to Casper, WY Relocation FAQs

About $93,600. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (107.4 in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX, 100.5 in Casper, WY, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Triangular Relocation & Tax Silo

Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX to Casper, WY: State Paychecks, Rents & Reciprocal Corridor

Reverse Route: Casper, WY to Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX
Relocation: Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX to Casper, WY Overview

Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX to Casper, WY: 2026 federal, state & local income tax, HUD Fair Market Rents & EPI living costs compared on the same salary.

Quick answers
How much salary do I need in Casper, WY to match $100,000 in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX?

About $93,600. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (107.4 in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX, 100.5 in Casper, WY, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Is Casper, WY cheaper than Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX?

EPI's family budgets for a single adult put overall living costs 6.4% lower in Casper, WY than in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX. The budgets cover housing, food, transportation, health care and other necessities.