2026 Relocation & Cost Arbitrage Engine

Relocation: Houston-Pasadena, TX to Las Vegas-Henderson, NV

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 Las Vegas-Henderson-North Las Vegas, NV.

Popular Corridors:
Equivalent Salary
$104,100
To maintain parity
Cost of Living Delta
+4.1%
Overall expenditure basket
Annual Tax Delta
$0
State + local taxes
Annual 1BR Rent Delta
+$2,088
HUD Fair Market Rents
Net Annual Buffer
-$2,088/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

Las Vegas-Henderson-North Las Vegas, NV

COL 111.8
Gross Parity Income $104,100
Federal Income Tax -$14,072
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$7,964
State Income Tax $0 (No State Tax)
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $82,064
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$17,220
Discretionary Cash Flow $64,844

EPI family budgets put living costs 4.1% higher in Las Vegas-Henderson-North Las Vegas, NV than in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX, so $100,000 in Houston goes about as far as $104,100 in Las Vegas. HUD's one-bedroom Fair Market Rent is $1,261 a month in Houston and $1,435 in Las Vegas, $2,088 a year more. 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 $2,088 a year worse off. The BLS median wage across all occupations is $49,410 in Houston and $46,670 in Las Vegas.

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) Las Vegas-Henderson-North Las Vegas (Monthly) Monthly Delta ($) Difference (%)
Housing (1BR Fair Market Rent)$1,261$1,435+$174+13.8%
Food & Groceries$321$349+$28+8.7%
Transportation$1,015$1,007-$8-0.8%
Healthcare$422$410-$12-2.8%
Other Necessities$480$517+$37+7.7%
Total Taxes (Federal, State, Local, FICA)$1,735$1,735$00.0%

HUD Fair Market Rent Differential

1-Bedroom Fair Market Rent +$174/mo (13.8%)
Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands: $1,261/mo Las Vegas-Henderson-North Las Vegas: $1,435/mo
2-Bedroom Fair Market Rent +$189/mo (12.6%)
Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands: $1,497/mo Las Vegas-Henderson-North Las Vegas: $1,686/mo

EPI Living Wage Benchmark Comparison

1 Adult (No Children) +$0.97/hr (4.1%)
Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands: $23.75/hr Las Vegas-Henderson-North Las Vegas: $24.72/hr
2 Adults + 1 Child (per earner) +$2.35/hr (11.4%)
Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands: $20.58/hr Las Vegas-Henderson-North Las Vegas: $22.93/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 Las Vegas-Henderson-North Las Vegas Median Nominal Wage Delta Action
General and Operations ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$119,600$97,290-$22,310 (-18.7%)View Dossier
Registered Nurse (RN)HealthcareHealthcare$99,830$103,940+$4,110 (+4.1%)View Dossier
Project Management SpecialistBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$99,510$99,940+$430 (+0.4%)View Dossier
Accountant & AuditorFinanceFinance$85,090$80,530-$4,560 (-5.4%)View Dossier
Software EngineerTechnologyTechnology$129,440$129,940+$500 (+0.4%)View Dossier
ElectricianSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$59,180$70,890+$11,710 (+19.8%)View Dossier
Financial ManagerFinanceFinance$166,910$132,650-$34,260 (-20.5%)View Dossier
Sales ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$135,880$103,580-$32,300 (-23.8%)View Dossier
Construction ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$103,530$112,570+$9,040 (+8.7%)View Dossier
Industrial Machinery MechanicIndustrial ManufacturingIndustrial Manufacturing$63,180$74,570+$11,390 (+18.0%)View Dossier
Quality Control InspectorIndustrial ManufacturingIndustrial Manufacturing$46,630$47,680+$1,050 (+2.3%)View Dossier
WelderSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$57,940$57,980+$40 (+0.1%)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 Las Vegas-Henderson-North Las Vegas, NV Relocation FAQs

About $104,100. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (107.4 in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX, 111.8 in Las Vegas-Henderson-North Las Vegas, NV, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Triangular Relocation & Tax Silo

Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX to Las Vegas-Henderson-North Las Vegas, NV: State Paychecks, Rents & Reciprocal Corridor

Reverse Route: Las Vegas-Henderson-North Las Vegas, NV to Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX
Relocation: Houston-Pasadena, TX to Las Vegas-Henderson, NV Overview

Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX to Las Vegas-Henderson-North Las Vegas, NV: 2026 federal, state & local income tax, HUD Fair Market Rents & EPI living costs. Official 2026 economic data for Relocation: Houston-Pasadena, TX to Las Vegas-Henderson, NV 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 Las Vegas-Henderson-North Las Vegas, NV to match $100,000 in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX?

About $104,100. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (107.4 in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX, 111.8 in Las Vegas-Henderson-North Las Vegas, NV, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Is Las Vegas-Henderson-North Las Vegas, NV cheaper than Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX?

EPI's family budgets for a single adult put overall living costs 4.1% higher in Las Vegas-Henderson-North Las Vegas, NV than in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX. The budgets cover housing, food, transportation, health care and other necessities.