2026 Relocation & Cost Arbitrage Engine

Relocation: Lafayette Metro, IN to Austin-Round Rock, 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 Lafayette-West Lafayette, IN to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX.

Popular Corridors:
Equivalent Salary
$134,200
To maintain parity
Cost of Living Delta
+34.2%
Overall expenditure basket
Annual Tax Delta
+$4,188
State + local taxes
Annual 1BR Rent Delta
+$5,520
HUD Fair Market Rents
Net Annual Buffer
-$1,332/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

Lafayette-West Lafayette, IN

COL 93.6
Gross Annual Income $100,000
Federal Income Tax -$13,170
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$7,650
State Income Tax -$2,921
Local / City Tax -$1,267
Net Annual Take-Home $74,992
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$12,840
Discretionary Cash Flow $62,152
Target Market
Destination Location

Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX

COL 125.6
Gross Parity Income $134,200
Federal Income Tax -$20,942
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$10,266
State Income Tax $0 (No State Tax)
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $102,992
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$18,360
Discretionary Cash Flow $84,632

EPI family budgets put living costs 34.2% higher in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX than in Lafayette-West Lafayette, IN, so $100,000 in Lafayette goes about as far as $134,200 in Austin. HUD's one-bedroom Fair Market Rent is $1,070 a month in Lafayette and $1,530 in Austin, $5,520 a year more. On the same $100,000 salary a single filer pays $4,188 less a year in federal, state and local income tax and FICA in Austin. Taxes and one-bedroom rent together leave you about $1,332 a year worse off. The BLS median wage across all occupations is $48,780 in Lafayette 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 Lafayette-West Lafayette (Monthly) Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos (Monthly) Monthly Delta ($) Difference (%)
Housing (1BR Fair Market Rent)$1,070$1,530+$460+43.0%
Food & Groceries$330$334+$4+1.2%
Transportation$1,005$1,062+$57+5.7%
Healthcare$409$467+$58+14.2%
Other Necessities$360$585+$225+62.5%
Total Taxes (Federal, State, Local, FICA)$2,084$1,735-$349-16.7%

HUD Fair Market Rent Differential

1-Bedroom Fair Market Rent +$460/mo (43.0%)
Lafayette-West Lafayette: $1,070/mo Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $1,530/mo
2-Bedroom Fair Market Rent +$544/mo (42.7%)
Lafayette-West Lafayette: $1,273/mo Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $1,817/mo

EPI Living Wage Benchmark Comparison

1 Adult (No Children) +$7.07/hr (34.2%)
Lafayette-West Lafayette: $20.70/hr Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $27.77/hr
2 Adults + 1 Child (per earner) +$4.02/hr (20.3%)
Lafayette-West Lafayette: $19.76/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 Lafayette-West Lafayette Median Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos Median Nominal Wage Delta Action
General and Operations ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$100,600$117,850+$17,250 (+17.1%)View Dossier
Software EngineerTechnologyTechnology$99,750$134,120+$34,370 (+34.5%)View Dossier
Registered Nurse (RN)HealthcareHealthcare$80,790$97,890+$17,100 (+21.2%)View Dossier
Project Management SpecialistBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$83,330$102,390+$19,060 (+22.9%)View Dossier
Accountant & AuditorFinanceFinance$77,740$83,120+$5,380 (+6.9%)View Dossier
Computer and Information Systems ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$133,270$176,990+$43,720 (+32.8%)View Dossier
Sales ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$120,980$151,760+$30,780 (+25.4%)View Dossier
ElectricianSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$78,540$60,390-$18,150 (-23.1%)View Dossier
Financial ManagerFinanceFinance$121,020$167,180+$46,160 (+38.1%)View Dossier
Marketing ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$117,150$164,920+$47,770 (+40.8%)View Dossier
Management AnalystBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$95,600$106,600+$11,000 (+11.5%)View Dossier
Construction ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$101,120$102,980+$1,860 (+1.8%)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

Lafayette-West Lafayette, IN to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX Relocation FAQs

About $134,200. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (93.6 in Lafayette-West Lafayette, IN, 125.6 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Triangular Relocation & Tax Silo

Lafayette-West Lafayette, IN to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX: State Paychecks, Rents & Reciprocal Corridor

Reverse Route: Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to Lafayette-West Lafayette, IN
Relocation: Lafayette Metro, IN to Austin-Round Rock, TX Overview

Lafayette-West Lafayette, IN to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX: 2026 federal, state & local income tax, HUD Fair Market Rents & EPI living costs compared on. Official 2026 economic data for Relocation: Lafayette Metro, IN to Austin-Round Rock, TX 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 Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to match $100,000 in Lafayette-West Lafayette, IN?

About $134,200. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (93.6 in Lafayette-West Lafayette, IN, 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 Lafayette-West Lafayette, IN?

EPI's family budgets for a single adult put overall living costs 34.2% higher in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX than in Lafayette-West Lafayette, IN. The budgets cover housing, food, transportation, health care and other necessities.