2026 Relocation & Cost Arbitrage Engine

Relocation: Kingston, NY to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX

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 Kingston, NY to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX.

Popular Corridors:
Equivalent Salary
$92,700
To maintain parity
Cost of Living Delta
-7.3%
Overall expenditure basket
Annual Tax Delta
+$4,860
State + local taxes
Annual 1BR Rent Delta
+$1,128
HUD Fair Market Rents
Net Annual Buffer
+$3,732/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

Kingston, NY

COL 135.5
Gross Annual Income $100,000
Federal Income Tax -$13,170
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$7,650
State Income Tax -$4,860
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $74,320
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$17,232
Discretionary Cash Flow $57,088
Target Market
Destination Location

Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX

COL 125.6
Gross Parity Income $92,700
Federal Income Tax -$11,564
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$7,092
State Income Tax $0 (No State Tax)
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $74,044
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$18,360
Discretionary Cash Flow $55,684

EPI family budgets put living costs 7.3% lower in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX than in Kingston, NY, so $100,000 in Kingston goes about as far as $92,700 in Austin. HUD's one-bedroom Fair Market Rent is $1,436 a month in Kingston and $1,530 in Austin, $1,128 a year more. On the same $100,000 salary a single filer pays $4,860 less a year in federal, state and local income tax and FICA in Austin. Taxes and one-bedroom rent together leave you about $3,732 a year better off. The BLS median wage across all occupations is $50,020 in Kingston and $56,950 in Austin.

Itemized Cost of Living Expenditure Arbitrage

Category-by-category breakdown of monthly baseline consumption between origin and destination.

Expenditure Category Kingston (Monthly) Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos (Monthly) Monthly Delta ($) Difference (%)
Housing (1BR Fair Market Rent)$1,436$1,530+$94+6.5%
Food & Groceries$373$334-$39-10.5%
Transportation$1,086$1,062-$24-2.2%
Healthcare$657$467-$190-28.9%
Other Necessities$541$585+$44+8.1%
Total Taxes (Federal, State, Local, FICA)$2,140$1,735-$405-18.9%

HUD Fair Market Rent Differential

1-Bedroom Fair Market Rent +$94/mo (6.5%)
Kingston: $1,436/mo Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $1,530/mo
2-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$61/mo (-3.2%)
Kingston: $1,878/mo Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $1,817/mo

EPI Living Wage Benchmark Comparison

1 Adult (No Children) -$2.19/hr (-7.3%)
Kingston: $29.96/hr Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $27.77/hr
2 Adults + 1 Child (per earner) -$5.23/hr (-18.0%)
Kingston: $29.01/hr Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $23.78/hr

Top Local Occupations Wage Parity

BLS median wage comparisons across benchmark roles between both metropolitan labor markets.

Occupation Title Industry Sector Kingston Median Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos Median Nominal Wage Delta Action
General and Operations ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$99,970$117,850+$17,880 (+17.9%)View Dossier
Software EngineerTechnologyTechnology$124,300$134,120+$9,820 (+7.9%)View Dossier
Registered Nurse (RN)HealthcareHealthcare$101,030$97,890-$3,140 (-3.1%)View Dossier
Project Management SpecialistBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$97,770$102,390+$4,620 (+4.7%)View Dossier
Accountant & AuditorFinanceFinance$80,560$83,120+$2,560 (+3.2%)View Dossier
Computer and Information Systems ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$154,270$176,990+$22,720 (+14.7%)View Dossier
Sales ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$143,260$151,760+$8,500 (+5.9%)View Dossier
ElectricianSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$69,440$60,390-$9,050 (-13.0%)View Dossier
Financial ManagerFinanceFinance$146,070$167,180+$21,110 (+14.5%)View Dossier
Marketing ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$127,400$164,920+$37,520 (+29.5%)View Dossier
Management AnalystBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$89,230$106,600+$17,370 (+19.5%)View Dossier
Construction ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$101,860$102,980+$1,120 (+1.1%)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

Kingston, NY to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX Relocation FAQs

About $92,700. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (135.5 in Kingston, NY, 125.6 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Triangular Relocation & Tax Silo

Kingston, NY to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX: State Paychecks, Rents & Reciprocal Corridor

Reverse Route: Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to Kingston, NY
Relocation: Kingston, NY to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX Overview

Kingston, NY to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX: 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 Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to match $100,000 in Kingston, NY?

About $92,700. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (135.5 in Kingston, NY, 125.6 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Is Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX cheaper than Kingston, NY?

EPI's family budgets for a single adult put overall living costs 7.3% lower in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX than in Kingston, NY. The budgets cover housing, food, transportation, health care and other necessities.