2026 Relocation & Cost Arbitrage Engine

Relocation: Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX to Kansas City, MO-KS

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 Kansas City, MO-KS.

Popular Corridors:
Equivalent Salary
$101,900
To maintain parity
Cost of Living Delta
+1.9%
Overall expenditure basket
Annual Tax Delta
-$4,670
State + local taxes
Annual 1BR Rent Delta
+$1,260
HUD Fair Market Rents
Net Annual Buffer
-$5,930/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

Kansas City, MO-KS

COL 109.4
Gross Parity Income $101,900
Federal Income Tax -$13,588
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$7,795
State Income Tax -$3,820
Local / City Tax -$1,019
Net Annual Take-Home $75,678
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$16,392
Discretionary Cash Flow $59,286

EPI family budgets put living costs 1.9% higher in Kansas City, MO-KS than in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX, so $100,000 in Houston goes about as far as $101,900 in Kansas City. HUD's one-bedroom Fair Market Rent is $1,261 a month in Houston and $1,366 in Kansas City, $1,260 a year more. On the same $100,000 salary a single filer pays $4,670 more a year in federal, state and local income tax and FICA in Kansas City. Taxes and one-bedroom rent together leave you about $5,930 a year worse off. The BLS median wage across all occupations is $49,410 in Houston and $50,820 in Kansas City.

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) Kansas City (Monthly) Monthly Delta ($) Difference (%)
Housing (1BR Fair Market Rent)$1,261$1,366+$105+8.3%
Food & Groceries$321$371+$50+15.6%
Transportation$1,015$1,032+$17+1.7%
Healthcare$422$458+$36+8.5%
Other Necessities$480$449-$31-6.5%
Total Taxes (Federal, State, Local, FICA)$1,735$2,124+$389+22.4%

HUD Fair Market Rent Differential

1-Bedroom Fair Market Rent +$105/mo (8.3%)
Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands: $1,261/mo Kansas City: $1,366/mo
2-Bedroom Fair Market Rent +$49/mo (3.3%)
Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands: $1,497/mo Kansas City: $1,546/mo

EPI Living Wage Benchmark Comparison

1 Adult (No Children) +$0.44/hr (1.9%)
Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands: $23.75/hr Kansas City: $24.19/hr
2 Adults + 1 Child (per earner) +$0.98/hr (4.8%)
Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands: $20.58/hr Kansas City: $21.56/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 Kansas City Median Nominal Wage Delta Action
General and Operations ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$119,600$90,490-$29,110 (-24.3%)View Dossier
Registered Nurse (RN)HealthcareHealthcare$99,830$83,040-$16,790 (-16.8%)View Dossier
Project Management SpecialistBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$99,510$101,050+$1,540 (+1.5%)View Dossier
Accountant & AuditorFinanceFinance$85,090$80,040-$5,050 (-5.9%)View Dossier
Software EngineerTechnologyTechnology$129,440$124,990-$4,450 (-3.4%)View Dossier
ElectricianSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$59,180$76,860+$17,680 (+29.9%)View Dossier
Financial ManagerFinanceFinance$166,910$162,490-$4,420 (-2.6%)View Dossier
Quality Control InspectorIndustrial ManufacturingIndustrial Manufacturing$46,630$63,000+$16,370 (+35.1%)View Dossier
Industrial Machinery MechanicIndustrial ManufacturingIndustrial Manufacturing$63,180$68,770+$5,590 (+8.8%)View Dossier
Construction ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$103,530$121,790+$18,260 (+17.6%)View Dossier
WelderSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$57,940$57,370-$570 (-1.0%)View Dossier
Computer and Information Systems ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$172,160$168,050-$4,110 (-2.4%)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

Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX to Kansas City, MO-KS Relocation FAQs

About $101,900. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (107.4 in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX, 109.4 in Kansas City, MO-KS, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Triangular Relocation & Tax Silo

Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX to Kansas City, MO-KS: State Paychecks, Rents & Reciprocal Corridor

Reverse Route: Kansas City, MO-KS to Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX
Relocation: Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX to Kansas City, MO-KS Overview

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

Quick answers
How much salary do I need in Kansas City, MO-KS to match $100,000 in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX?

About $101,900. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (107.4 in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX, 109.4 in Kansas City, MO-KS, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Is Kansas City, MO-KS cheaper than Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX?

EPI's family budgets for a single adult put overall living costs 1.9% higher in Kansas City, MO-KS than in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX. The budgets cover housing, food, transportation, health care and other necessities.