2026 Relocation & Cost Arbitrage Engine

Relocation: Houston-Pasadena, TX to Fayetteville Metro, AR

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 Fayetteville-Springdale-Rogers, AR.

Popular Corridors:
Equivalent Salary
$94,300
To maintain parity
Cost of Living Delta
-5.7%
Overall expenditure basket
Annual Tax Delta
-$3,687
State + local taxes
Annual 1BR Rent Delta
-$2,460
HUD Fair Market Rents
Net Annual Buffer
-$1,227/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

Fayetteville-Springdale-Rogers, AR

COL 101.2
Gross Parity Income $94,300
Federal Income Tax -$11,916
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$7,214
State Income Tax -$3,142
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $72,028
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$12,672
Discretionary Cash Flow $59,356

EPI family budgets put living costs 5.7% lower in Fayetteville-Springdale-Rogers, AR than in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX, so $100,000 in Houston goes about as far as $94,300 in Fayetteville. HUD's one-bedroom Fair Market Rent is $1,261 a month in Houston and $1,056 in Fayetteville, $2,460 a year less. On the same $100,000 salary a single filer pays $3,687 more a year in federal, state and local income tax and FICA in Fayetteville. Taxes and one-bedroom rent together leave you about $1,227 a year worse off. The BLS median wage across all occupations is $49,410 in Houston and $46,610 in Fayetteville.

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) Fayetteville-Springdale-Rogers (Monthly) Monthly Delta ($) Difference (%)
Housing (1BR Fair Market Rent)$1,261$1,056-$205-16.3%
Food & Groceries$321$342+$21+6.5%
Transportation$1,015$1,085+$70+6.9%
Healthcare$422$481+$59+14.0%
Other Necessities$480$371-$109-22.7%
Total Taxes (Federal, State, Local, FICA)$1,735$2,042+$307+17.7%

HUD Fair Market Rent Differential

1-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$205/mo (-16.3%)
Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands: $1,261/mo Fayetteville-Springdale-Rogers: $1,056/mo
2-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$241/mo (-16.1%)
Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands: $1,497/mo Fayetteville-Springdale-Rogers: $1,256/mo

EPI Living Wage Benchmark Comparison

1 Adult (No Children) -$1.37/hr (-5.8%)
Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands: $23.75/hr Fayetteville-Springdale-Rogers: $22.38/hr
2 Adults + 1 Child (per earner) -$0.68/hr (-3.3%)
Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands: $20.58/hr Fayetteville-Springdale-Rogers: $19.90/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 Fayetteville-Springdale-Rogers Median Nominal Wage Delta Action
General and Operations ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$119,600$81,800-$37,800 (-31.6%)View Dossier
Registered Nurse (RN)HealthcareHealthcare$99,830$77,910-$21,920 (-22.0%)View Dossier
Project Management SpecialistBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$99,510$82,310-$17,200 (-17.3%)View Dossier
Accountant & AuditorFinanceFinance$85,090$77,190-$7,900 (-9.3%)View Dossier
Software EngineerTechnologyTechnology$129,440$105,130-$24,310 (-18.8%)View Dossier
ElectricianSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$59,180$49,230-$9,950 (-16.8%)View Dossier
Financial ManagerFinanceFinance$166,910$147,410-$19,500 (-11.7%)View Dossier
Industrial Machinery MechanicIndustrial ManufacturingIndustrial Manufacturing$63,180$59,880-$3,300 (-5.2%)View Dossier
Quality Control InspectorIndustrial ManufacturingIndustrial Manufacturing$46,630$41,570-$5,060 (-10.9%)View Dossier
Sales ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$135,880$147,270+$11,390 (+8.4%)View Dossier
Construction ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$103,530$99,320-$4,210 (-4.1%)View Dossier
WelderSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$57,940$47,740-$10,200 (-17.6%)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

Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX to Fayetteville-Springdale-Rogers, AR Relocation FAQs

About $94,300. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (107.4 in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX, 101.2 in Fayetteville-Springdale-Rogers, AR, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Triangular Relocation & Tax Silo

Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX to Fayetteville-Springdale-Rogers, AR: State Paychecks, Rents & Reciprocal Corridor

Reverse Route: Fayetteville-Springdale-Rogers, AR to Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX
Relocation: Houston-Pasadena, TX to Fayetteville Metro, AR Overview

Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX to Fayetteville-Springdale-Rogers, AR: 2026 federal, state & local income tax, HUD Fair Market Rents & EPI living costs. Official 2026 economic data for Relocation: Houston-Pasadena, TX to Fayetteville Metro, AR 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 Fayetteville-Springdale-Rogers, AR to match $100,000 in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX?

About $94,300. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (107.4 in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX, 101.2 in Fayetteville-Springdale-Rogers, AR, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Is Fayetteville-Springdale-Rogers, AR cheaper than Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX?

EPI's family budgets for a single adult put overall living costs 5.7% lower in Fayetteville-Springdale-Rogers, AR than in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX. The budgets cover housing, food, transportation, health care and other necessities.