2026 Relocation & Cost Arbitrage Engine

Relocation: New Orleans-Metairie, LA 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 New Orleans-Metairie, LA to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX.

Popular Corridors:
Equivalent Salary
$118,700
To maintain parity
Cost of Living Delta
+18.7%
Overall expenditure basket
Annual Tax Delta
+$2,614
State + local taxes
Annual 1BR Rent Delta
+$3,612
HUD Fair Market Rents
Net Annual Buffer
-$998/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

New Orleans-Metairie, LA

COL 105.8
Gross Annual Income $100,000
Federal Income Tax -$13,170
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$7,650
State Income Tax -$2,614
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $76,566
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$14,748
Discretionary Cash Flow $61,818
Target Market
Destination Location

Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX

COL 125.6
Gross Parity Income $118,700
Federal Income Tax -$17,284
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$9,081
State Income Tax $0 (No State Tax)
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $92,335
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$18,360
Discretionary Cash Flow $73,975

EPI family budgets put living costs 18.7% higher in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX than in New Orleans-Metairie, LA, so $100,000 in New Orleans goes about as far as $118,700 in Austin. HUD's one-bedroom Fair Market Rent is $1,229 a month in New Orleans and $1,530 in Austin, $3,612 a year more. On the same $100,000 salary a single filer pays $2,614 less a year in federal, state and local income tax and FICA in Austin. Taxes and one-bedroom rent together leave you about $998 a year worse off. The BLS median wage across all occupations is $47,290 in New Orleans 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 New Orleans-Metairie (Monthly) Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos (Monthly) Monthly Delta ($) Difference (%)
Housing (1BR Fair Market Rent)$1,229$1,530+$301+24.5%
Food & Groceries$365$334-$31-8.5%
Transportation$955$1,062+$107+11.2%
Healthcare$457$467+$10+2.2%
Other Necessities$446$585+$139+31.2%
Total Taxes (Federal, State, Local, FICA)$1,953$1,735-$218-11.2%

HUD Fair Market Rent Differential

1-Bedroom Fair Market Rent +$301/mo (24.5%)
New Orleans-Metairie: $1,229/mo Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $1,530/mo
2-Bedroom Fair Market Rent +$337/mo (22.8%)
New Orleans-Metairie: $1,480/mo Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $1,817/mo

EPI Living Wage Benchmark Comparison

1 Adult (No Children) +$4.38/hr (18.7%)
New Orleans-Metairie: $23.39/hr Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $27.77/hr
2 Adults + 1 Child (per earner) +$2.62/hr (12.4%)
New Orleans-Metairie: $21.16/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 New Orleans-Metairie Median Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos Median Nominal Wage Delta Action
General and Operations ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$105,110$117,850+$12,740 (+12.1%)View Dossier
Software EngineerTechnologyTechnology$106,950$134,120+$27,170 (+25.4%)View Dossier
Registered Nurse (RN)HealthcareHealthcare$81,850$97,890+$16,040 (+19.6%)View Dossier
Project Management SpecialistBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$85,410$102,390+$16,980 (+19.9%)View Dossier
Accountant & AuditorFinanceFinance$77,940$83,120+$5,180 (+6.6%)View Dossier
Solutions ArchitectTechnologyTechnology$94,520$129,470+$34,950 (+37.0%)View Dossier
Computer and Information Systems ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$131,570$176,990+$45,420 (+34.5%)View Dossier
Sales ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$118,540$151,760+$33,220 (+28.0%)View Dossier
ElectricianSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$62,490$60,390-$2,100 (-3.4%)View Dossier
Financial ManagerFinanceFinance$134,110$167,180+$33,070 (+24.7%)View Dossier
Management AnalystBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$95,100$106,600+$11,500 (+12.1%)View Dossier
Marketing ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$126,740$164,920+$38,180 (+30.1%)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

New Orleans-Metairie, LA to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX Relocation FAQs

About $118,700. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (105.8 in New Orleans-Metairie, LA, 125.6 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Triangular Relocation & Tax Silo

New Orleans-Metairie, LA to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX: State Paychecks, Rents & Reciprocal Corridor

Reverse Route: Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to New Orleans-Metairie, LA
Relocation: New Orleans-Metairie, LA to Austin-Round Rock, TX Overview

New Orleans-Metairie, LA 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: New Orleans-Metairie, LA 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 New Orleans-Metairie, LA?

About $118,700. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (105.8 in New Orleans-Metairie, LA, 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 New Orleans-Metairie, LA?

EPI's family budgets for a single adult put overall living costs 18.7% higher in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX than in New Orleans-Metairie, LA. The budgets cover housing, food, transportation, health care and other necessities.