2026 Relocation & Cost Arbitrage Engine

Relocation: Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX to Rapid City, SD

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 Rapid City, SD.

Popular Corridors:
Equivalent Salary
$91,200
To maintain parity
Cost of Living Delta
-8.8%
Overall expenditure basket
Annual Tax Delta
$0
State + local taxes
Annual 1BR Rent Delta
-$2,016
HUD Fair Market Rents
Net Annual Buffer
+$2,016/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

Rapid City, SD

COL 98.0
Gross Parity Income $91,200
Federal Income Tax -$11,234
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$6,977
State Income Tax $0 (No State Tax)
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $72,989
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$13,116
Discretionary Cash Flow $59,873

EPI family budgets put living costs 8.8% lower in Rapid City, SD than in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX, so $100,000 in Houston goes about as far as $91,200 in Rapid City. HUD's one-bedroom Fair Market Rent is $1,261 a month in Houston and $1,093 in Rapid City, $2,016 a year less. 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 $2,016 a year better off. The BLS median wage across all occupations is $49,410 in Houston and $46,270 in Rapid 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) Rapid City (Monthly) Monthly Delta ($) Difference (%)
Housing (1BR Fair Market Rent)$1,261$1,093-$168-13.3%
Food & Groceries$321$362+$41+12.8%
Transportation$1,015$1,067+$52+5.1%
Healthcare$422$628+$206+48.8%
Other Necessities$480$350-$130-27.1%
Total Taxes (Federal, State, Local, FICA)$1,735$1,735$00.0%

HUD Fair Market Rent Differential

1-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$168/mo (-13.3%)
Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands: $1,261/mo Rapid City: $1,093/mo
2-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$67/mo (-4.5%)
Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands: $1,497/mo Rapid City: $1,430/mo

EPI Living Wage Benchmark Comparison

1 Adult (No Children) -$2.09/hr (-8.8%)
Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands: $23.75/hr Rapid City: $21.66/hr
2 Adults + 1 Child (per earner) +$0.14/hr (0.7%)
Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands: $20.58/hr Rapid City: $20.72/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 Rapid City Median Nominal Wage Delta Action
General and Operations ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$119,600$130,410+$10,810 (+9.0%)View Dossier
Registered Nurse (RN)HealthcareHealthcare$99,830$79,380-$20,450 (-20.5%)View Dossier
Project Management SpecialistBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$99,510$74,700-$24,810 (-24.9%)View Dossier
Accountant & AuditorFinanceFinance$85,090$79,270-$5,820 (-6.8%)View Dossier
Software EngineerTechnologyTechnology$129,440$91,840-$37,600 (-29.0%)View Dossier
ElectricianSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$59,180$61,160+$1,980 (+3.3%)View Dossier
Financial ManagerFinanceFinance$166,910$160,280-$6,630 (-4.0%)View Dossier
Industrial Machinery MechanicIndustrial ManufacturingIndustrial Manufacturing$63,180$63,890+$710 (+1.1%)View Dossier
Construction ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$103,530$120,560+$17,030 (+16.4%)View Dossier
Quality Control InspectorIndustrial ManufacturingIndustrial Manufacturing$46,630$48,310+$1,680 (+3.6%)View Dossier
Sales ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$135,880$134,010-$1,870 (-1.4%)View Dossier
WelderSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$57,940$51,690-$6,250 (-10.8%)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 Rapid City, SD Relocation FAQs

About $91,200. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (107.4 in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX, 98.0 in Rapid City, SD, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Triangular Relocation & Tax Silo

Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX to Rapid City, SD: State Paychecks, Rents & Reciprocal Corridor

Reverse Route: Rapid City, SD to Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX
Relocation: Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX to Rapid City, SD Overview

Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX to Rapid City, SD: 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 Rapid City, SD to match $100,000 in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX?

About $91,200. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (107.4 in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX, 98.0 in Rapid City, SD, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Is Rapid City, SD cheaper than Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX?

EPI's family budgets for a single adult put overall living costs 8.8% lower in Rapid City, SD than in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX. The budgets cover housing, food, transportation, health care and other necessities.