2026 Relocation & Cost Arbitrage Engine

Relocation: Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX to Omaha, NE-IA

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 Omaha, NE-IA.

Popular Corridors:
Equivalent Salary
$100,900
To maintain parity
Cost of Living Delta
+0.9%
Overall expenditure basket
Annual Tax Delta
-$3,670
State + local taxes
Annual 1BR Rent Delta
-$504
HUD Fair Market Rents
Net Annual Buffer
-$3,166/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

Omaha, NE-IA

COL 108.3
Gross Parity Income $100,900
Federal Income Tax -$13,368
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$7,719
State Income Tax -$3,711
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $76,102
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$14,628
Discretionary Cash Flow $61,474

EPI family budgets put living costs 0.9% higher in Omaha, NE-IA than in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX, so $100,000 in Houston goes about as far as $100,900 in Omaha. HUD's one-bedroom Fair Market Rent is $1,261 a month in Houston and $1,219 in Omaha, $504 a year less. On the same $100,000 salary a single filer pays $3,670 more a year in federal, state and local income tax and FICA in Omaha. Taxes and one-bedroom rent together leave you about $3,166 a year worse off. The BLS median wage across all occupations is $49,410 in Houston and $49,660 in Omaha.

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) Omaha (Monthly) Monthly Delta ($) Difference (%)
Housing (1BR Fair Market Rent)$1,261$1,219-$42-3.3%
Food & Groceries$321$359+$38+11.8%
Transportation$1,015$1,069+$54+5.3%
Healthcare$422$513+$91+21.6%
Other Necessities$480$419-$61-12.7%
Total Taxes (Federal, State, Local, FICA)$1,735$2,041+$306+17.6%

HUD Fair Market Rent Differential

1-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$42/mo (-3.3%)
Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands: $1,261/mo Omaha: $1,219/mo
2-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$47/mo (-3.1%)
Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands: $1,497/mo Omaha: $1,450/mo

EPI Living Wage Benchmark Comparison

1 Adult (No Children) +$0.21/hr (0.9%)
Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands: $23.75/hr Omaha: $23.96/hr
2 Adults + 1 Child (per earner) +$1.36/hr (6.6%)
Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands: $20.58/hr Omaha: $21.94/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 Omaha Median Nominal Wage Delta Action
General and Operations ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$119,600$90,620-$28,980 (-24.2%)View Dossier
Registered Nurse (RN)HealthcareHealthcare$99,830$84,600-$15,230 (-15.3%)View Dossier
Project Management SpecialistBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$99,510$82,460-$17,050 (-17.1%)View Dossier
Accountant & AuditorFinanceFinance$85,090$77,030-$8,060 (-9.5%)View Dossier
Software EngineerTechnologyTechnology$129,440$125,220-$4,220 (-3.3%)View Dossier
ElectricianSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$59,180$62,440+$3,260 (+5.5%)View Dossier
Financial ManagerFinanceFinance$166,910$140,390-$26,520 (-15.9%)View Dossier
Industrial Machinery MechanicIndustrial ManufacturingIndustrial Manufacturing$63,180$65,320+$2,140 (+3.4%)View Dossier
Construction ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$103,530$102,520-$1,010 (-1.0%)View Dossier
Sales ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$135,880$130,100-$5,780 (-4.3%)View Dossier
Quality Control InspectorIndustrial ManufacturingIndustrial Manufacturing$46,630$49,030+$2,400 (+5.1%)View Dossier
WelderSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$57,940$53,110-$4,830 (-8.3%)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 Omaha, NE-IA Relocation FAQs

About $100,900. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (107.4 in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX, 108.3 in Omaha, NE-IA, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Triangular Relocation & Tax Silo

Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX to Omaha, NE-IA: State Paychecks, Rents & Reciprocal Corridor

Reverse Route: Omaha, NE-IA to Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX
Relocation: Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX to Omaha, NE-IA Overview

Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX to Omaha, NE-IA: 2026 federal, state & local income tax, HUD Fair Market Rents & EPI living costs compared on the same. Official 2026 economic data for Relocation: Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX to Omaha, NE-IA 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 Omaha, NE-IA to match $100,000 in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX?

About $100,900. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (107.4 in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX, 108.3 in Omaha, NE-IA, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Is Omaha, NE-IA cheaper than Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX?

EPI's family budgets for a single adult put overall living costs 0.9% higher in Omaha, NE-IA than in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX. The budgets cover housing, food, transportation, health care and other necessities.