2026 Relocation & Cost Arbitrage Engine

Relocation: Houston-Pasadena, TX to Provo-Orem, UT

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 Provo-Orem-Lehi, UT.

Popular Corridors:
Equivalent Salary
$111,300
To maintain parity
Cost of Living Delta
+11.3%
Overall expenditure basket
Annual Tax Delta
-$4,500
State + local taxes
Annual 1BR Rent Delta
-$828
HUD Fair Market Rents
Net Annual Buffer
-$3,672/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

Provo-Orem-Lehi, UT

COL 119.5
Gross Parity Income $111,300
Federal Income Tax -$15,656
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$8,514
State Income Tax -$5,009
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $82,121
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$14,304
Discretionary Cash Flow $67,817

EPI family budgets put living costs 11.3% higher in Provo-Orem-Lehi, UT than in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX, so $100,000 in Houston goes about as far as $111,300 in Provo. HUD's one-bedroom Fair Market Rent is $1,261 a month in Houston and $1,192 in Provo, $828 a year less. On the same $100,000 salary a single filer pays $4,500 more a year in federal, state and local income tax and FICA in Provo. Taxes and one-bedroom rent together leave you about $3,672 a year worse off. The BLS median wage across all occupations is $49,410 in Houston and $48,010 in Provo.

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) Provo-Orem-Lehi (Monthly) Monthly Delta ($) Difference (%)
Housing (1BR Fair Market Rent)$1,261$1,192-$69-5.5%
Food & Groceries$321$343+$22+6.9%
Transportation$1,015$1,136+$121+11.9%
Healthcare$422$519+$97+23.0%
Other Necessities$480$468-$12-2.5%
Total Taxes (Federal, State, Local, FICA)$1,735$2,110+$375+21.6%

HUD Fair Market Rent Differential

1-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$69/mo (-5.5%)
Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands: $1,261/mo Provo-Orem-Lehi: $1,192/mo
2-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$134/mo (-9.0%)
Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands: $1,497/mo Provo-Orem-Lehi: $1,363/mo

EPI Living Wage Benchmark Comparison

1 Adult (No Children) +$2.67/hr (11.2%)
Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands: $23.75/hr Provo-Orem-Lehi: $26.42/hr
2 Adults + 1 Child (per earner) +$1.81/hr (8.8%)
Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands: $20.58/hr Provo-Orem-Lehi: $22.39/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 Provo-Orem-Lehi Median Nominal Wage Delta Action
General and Operations ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$119,600$95,790-$23,810 (-19.9%)View Dossier
Registered Nurse (RN)HealthcareHealthcare$99,830$81,780-$18,050 (-18.1%)View Dossier
Project Management SpecialistBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$99,510$88,180-$11,330 (-11.4%)View Dossier
Accountant & AuditorFinanceFinance$85,090$75,700-$9,390 (-11.0%)View Dossier
Software EngineerTechnologyTechnology$129,440$131,210+$1,770 (+1.4%)View Dossier
ElectricianSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$59,180$60,860+$1,680 (+2.8%)View Dossier
Financial ManagerFinanceFinance$166,910$154,990-$11,920 (-7.1%)View Dossier
Industrial Machinery MechanicIndustrial ManufacturingIndustrial Manufacturing$63,180$65,770+$2,590 (+4.1%)View Dossier
Sales ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$135,880$135,210-$670 (-0.5%)View Dossier
Construction ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$103,530$99,490-$4,040 (-3.9%)View Dossier
Quality Control InspectorIndustrial ManufacturingIndustrial Manufacturing$46,630$45,710-$920 (-2.0%)View Dossier
WelderSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$57,940$54,740-$3,200 (-5.5%)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 Provo-Orem-Lehi, UT Relocation FAQs

About $111,300. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (107.4 in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX, 119.5 in Provo-Orem-Lehi, UT, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Triangular Relocation & Tax Silo

Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX to Provo-Orem-Lehi, UT: State Paychecks, Rents & Reciprocal Corridor

Reverse Route: Provo-Orem-Lehi, UT to Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX
Relocation: Houston-Pasadena, TX to Provo-Orem, UT Overview

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

About $111,300. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (107.4 in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX, 119.5 in Provo-Orem-Lehi, UT, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Is Provo-Orem-Lehi, UT cheaper than Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX?

EPI's family budgets for a single adult put overall living costs 11.3% higher in Provo-Orem-Lehi, UT than in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX. The budgets cover housing, food, transportation, health care and other necessities.