2026 Relocation & Cost Arbitrage Engine

Relocation: Little Rock Metro, AR to Dallas-Fort Worth, 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 Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway, AR to Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX.

Popular Corridors:
Equivalent Salary
$121,000
To maintain parity
Cost of Living Delta
+21.0%
Overall expenditure basket
Annual Tax Delta
+$3,687
State + local taxes
Annual 1BR Rent Delta
+$6,804
HUD Fair Market Rents
Net Annual Buffer
-$3,117/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

Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway, AR

COL 101.7
Gross Annual Income $100,000
Federal Income Tax -$13,170
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$7,650
State Income Tax -$3,687
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $75,493
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$11,628
Discretionary Cash Flow $63,865
Target Market
Destination Location

Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX

COL 123.0
Gross Parity Income $121,000
Federal Income Tax -$17,790
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$9,257
State Income Tax $0 (No State Tax)
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $93,954
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$18,432
Discretionary Cash Flow $75,522

EPI family budgets put living costs 21.0% higher in Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX than in Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway, AR, so $100,000 in Little Rock goes about as far as $121,000 in Dallas. HUD's one-bedroom Fair Market Rent is $969 a month in Little Rock and $1,536 in Dallas, $6,804 a year more. On the same $100,000 salary a single filer pays $3,687 less a year in federal, state and local income tax and FICA in Dallas. Taxes and one-bedroom rent together leave you about $3,117 a year worse off. The BLS median wage across all occupations is $45,790 in Little Rock and $51,440 in Dallas.

Itemized Cost of Living Expenditure Arbitrage

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

Expenditure Category Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway (Monthly) Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington (Monthly) Monthly Delta ($) Difference (%)
Housing (1BR Fair Market Rent)$969$1,536+$567+58.5%
Food & Groceries$343$342-$1-0.3%
Transportation$1,052$1,011-$41-3.9%
Healthcare$481$459-$22-4.6%
Other Necessities$382$582+$200+52.4%
Total Taxes (Federal, State, Local, FICA)$2,042$1,735-$307-15.0%

HUD Fair Market Rent Differential

1-Bedroom Fair Market Rent +$567/mo (58.5%)
Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway: $969/mo Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington: $1,536/mo
2-Bedroom Fair Market Rent +$686/mo (61.2%)
Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway: $1,121/mo Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington: $1,807/mo

EPI Living Wage Benchmark Comparison

1 Adult (No Children) +$4.72/hr (21.0%)
Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway: $22.48/hr Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington: $27.20/hr
2 Adults + 1 Child (per earner) +$3.59/hr (18.6%)
Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway: $19.33/hr Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington: $22.92/hr

Top Local Occupations Wage Parity

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

Occupation Title Industry Sector Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway Median Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington Median Nominal Wage Delta Action
General and Operations ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$76,080$111,010+$34,930 (+45.9%)View Dossier
Registered Nurse (RN)HealthcareHealthcare$81,070$101,420+$20,350 (+25.1%)View Dossier
Software EngineerTechnologyTechnology$104,070$133,290+$29,220 (+28.1%)View Dossier
Project Management SpecialistBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$73,480$98,900+$25,420 (+34.6%)View Dossier
Accountant & AuditorFinanceFinance$65,810$82,620+$16,810 (+25.5%)View Dossier
Computer and Information Systems ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$129,700$173,810+$44,110 (+34.0%)View Dossier
Financial ManagerFinanceFinance$119,360$169,200+$49,840 (+41.8%)View Dossier
Sales ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$102,300$144,290+$41,990 (+41.0%)View Dossier
ElectricianSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$48,200$59,010+$10,810 (+22.4%)View Dossier
Solutions ArchitectTechnologyTechnology$88,610$127,360+$38,750 (+43.7%)View Dossier
Management AnalystBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$75,750$102,860+$27,110 (+35.8%)View Dossier
Medical and Health Services ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$101,280$121,640+$20,360 (+20.1%)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

Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway, AR to Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX Relocation FAQs

About $121,000. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (101.7 in Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway, AR, 123.0 in Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Triangular Relocation & Tax Silo

Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway, AR to Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX: State Paychecks, Rents & Reciprocal Corridor

Reverse Route: Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX to Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway, AR
Relocation: Little Rock Metro, AR to Dallas-Fort Worth, TX Overview

Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway, AR to Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX: 2026 federal, state & local income tax, HUD Fair Market Rents & EPI living costs. Official 2026 economic data for Relocation: Little Rock Metro, AR to Dallas-Fort Worth, 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 Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX to match $100,000 in Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway, AR?

About $121,000. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (101.7 in Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway, AR, 123.0 in Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Is Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX cheaper than Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway, AR?

EPI's family budgets for a single adult put overall living costs 21.0% higher in Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX than in Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway, AR. The budgets cover housing, food, transportation, health care and other necessities.