2026 Relocation & Cost Arbitrage Engine

Relocation: Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX to Tulsa, OK

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 Tulsa, OK.

Popular Corridors:
Equivalent Salary
$94,300
To maintain parity
Cost of Living Delta
-5.7%
Overall expenditure basket
Annual Tax Delta
-$3,955
State + local taxes
Annual 1BR Rent Delta
-$3,048
HUD Fair Market Rents
Net Annual Buffer
-$907/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

Tulsa, OK

COL 101.3
Gross Parity Income $94,300
Federal Income Tax -$11,916
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$7,214
State Income Tax -$3,698
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $71,472
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$12,084
Discretionary Cash Flow $59,388

EPI family budgets put living costs 5.7% lower in Tulsa, OK than in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX, so $100,000 in Houston goes about as far as $94,300 in Tulsa. HUD's one-bedroom Fair Market Rent is $1,261 a month in Houston and $1,007 in Tulsa, $3,048 a year less. On the same $100,000 salary a single filer pays $3,955 more a year in federal, state and local income tax and FICA in Tulsa. Taxes and one-bedroom rent together leave you about $907 a year worse off. The BLS median wage across all occupations is $49,410 in Houston and $46,670 in Tulsa.

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) Tulsa (Monthly) Monthly Delta ($) Difference (%)
Housing (1BR Fair Market Rent)$1,261$1,007-$254-20.1%
Food & Groceries$321$351+$30+9.3%
Transportation$1,015$1,055+$40+3.9%
Healthcare$422$452+$30+7.1%
Other Necessities$480$385-$95-19.8%
Total Taxes (Federal, State, Local, FICA)$1,735$2,065+$330+19.0%

HUD Fair Market Rent Differential

1-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$254/mo (-20.1%)
Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands: $1,261/mo Tulsa: $1,007/mo
2-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$268/mo (-17.9%)
Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands: $1,497/mo Tulsa: $1,229/mo

EPI Living Wage Benchmark Comparison

1 Adult (No Children) -$1.35/hr (-5.7%)
Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands: $23.75/hr Tulsa: $22.40/hr
2 Adults + 1 Child (per earner) +$0.40/hr (1.9%)
Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands: $20.58/hr Tulsa: $20.98/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 Tulsa Median Nominal Wage Delta Action
General and Operations ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$119,600$96,150-$23,450 (-19.6%)View Dossier
Registered Nurse (RN)HealthcareHealthcare$99,830$84,790-$15,040 (-15.1%)View Dossier
Project Management SpecialistBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$99,510$93,240-$6,270 (-6.3%)View Dossier
Accountant & AuditorFinanceFinance$85,090$81,320-$3,770 (-4.4%)View Dossier
Software EngineerTechnologyTechnology$129,440$108,730-$20,710 (-16.0%)View Dossier
ElectricianSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$59,180$62,280+$3,100 (+5.2%)View Dossier
Financial ManagerFinanceFinance$166,910$141,980-$24,930 (-14.9%)View Dossier
WelderSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$57,940$53,550-$4,390 (-7.6%)View Dossier
Industrial Machinery MechanicIndustrial ManufacturingIndustrial Manufacturing$63,180$62,010-$1,170 (-1.9%)View Dossier
Quality Control InspectorIndustrial ManufacturingIndustrial Manufacturing$46,630$56,210+$9,580 (+20.5%)View Dossier
Sales ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$135,880$140,040+$4,160 (+3.1%)View Dossier
Construction ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$103,530$105,960+$2,430 (+2.3%)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 Tulsa, OK Relocation FAQs

About $94,300. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (107.4 in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX, 101.3 in Tulsa, OK, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Triangular Relocation & Tax Silo

Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX to Tulsa, OK: State Paychecks, Rents & Reciprocal Corridor

Reverse Route: Tulsa, OK to Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX
Relocation: Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX to Tulsa, OK Overview

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

Quick answers
How much salary do I need in Tulsa, OK to match $100,000 in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX?

About $94,300. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (107.4 in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX, 101.3 in Tulsa, OK, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Is Tulsa, OK cheaper than Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX?

EPI's family budgets for a single adult put overall living costs 5.7% lower in Tulsa, OK than in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX. The budgets cover housing, food, transportation, health care and other necessities.