2026 Relocation & Cost Arbitrage Engine

Relocation: Raleigh-Cary, NC to New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ

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 Raleigh-Cary, NC to New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ.

Popular Corridors:
Equivalent Salary
$132,900
To maintain parity
Cost of Living Delta
+32.9%
Overall expenditure basket
Annual Tax Delta
-$4,820
State + local taxes
Annual 1BR Rent Delta
+$14,124
HUD Fair Market Rents
Net Annual Buffer
-$18,944/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

Raleigh-Cary, NC

COL 136.2
Gross Annual Income $100,000
Federal Income Tax -$13,170
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$7,650
State Income Tax -$3,481
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $75,699
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$18,624
Discretionary Cash Flow $57,075
Target Market
Destination Location

New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ

COL 181.0
Gross Parity Income $132,900
Federal Income Tax -$20,630
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$10,167
State Income Tax -$7,088
Local / City Tax -$4,716
Net Annual Take-Home $90,299
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$32,748
Discretionary Cash Flow $57,551

EPI family budgets put living costs 32.9% higher in New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ than in Raleigh-Cary, NC, so $100,000 in Raleigh goes about as far as $132,900 in New York. HUD's one-bedroom Fair Market Rent is $1,552 a month in Raleigh and $2,729 in New York, $14,124 a year more. On the same $100,000 salary a single filer pays $4,820 more a year in federal, state and local income tax and FICA in New York. Taxes and one-bedroom rent together leave you about $18,944 a year worse off. The BLS median wage across all occupations is $51,990 in Raleigh and $61,430 in New York.

Itemized Cost of Living Expenditure Arbitrage

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

Expenditure Category Raleigh-Cary (Monthly) New York-Newark-Jersey City (Monthly) Monthly Delta ($) Difference (%)
Housing (1BR Fair Market Rent)$1,552$2,729+$1,177+75.8%
Food & Groceries$382$426+$44+11.5%
Transportation$1,109$693-$416-37.5%
Healthcare$451$748+$297+65.9%
Other Necessities$595$879+$284+47.7%
Total Taxes (Federal, State, Local, FICA)$2,025$2,427+$402+19.9%

HUD Fair Market Rent Differential

1-Bedroom Fair Market Rent +$1,177/mo (75.8%)
Raleigh-Cary: $1,552/mo New York-Newark-Jersey City: $2,729/mo
2-Bedroom Fair Market Rent +$1,282/mo (75.9%)
Raleigh-Cary: $1,689/mo New York-Newark-Jersey City: $2,971/mo

EPI Living Wage Benchmark Comparison

1 Adult (No Children) +$9.90/hr (32.9%)
Raleigh-Cary: $30.13/hr New York-Newark-Jersey City: $40.03/hr
2 Adults + 1 Child (per earner) +$9.77/hr (40.0%)
Raleigh-Cary: $24.42/hr New York-Newark-Jersey City: $34.19/hr

Top Local Occupations Wage Parity

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

Occupation Title Industry Sector Raleigh-Cary Median New York-Newark-Jersey City Median Nominal Wage Delta Action
Registered Nurse (RN)HealthcareHealthcare$84,830$119,720+$34,890 (+41.1%)View Dossier
General and Operations ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$114,940$157,000+$42,060 (+36.6%)View Dossier
Software EngineerTechnologyTechnology$132,770$166,830+$34,060 (+25.7%)View Dossier
Accountant & AuditorFinanceFinance$81,950$105,650+$23,700 (+28.9%)View Dossier
Financial ManagerFinanceFinance$163,130$221,010+$57,880 (+35.5%)View Dossier
Project Management SpecialistBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$102,280$126,660+$24,380 (+23.8%)View Dossier
Management AnalystBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$96,820$124,390+$27,570 (+28.5%)View Dossier
Computer and Information Systems ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$173,960$215,300+$41,340 (+23.8%)View Dossier
Marketing ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$167,640$192,840+$25,200 (+15.0%)View Dossier
Financial AnalystFinanceFinance$99,200$128,930+$29,730 (+30.0%)View Dossier
Sales ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$163,520$215,150+$51,630 (+31.6%)View Dossier
ElectricianSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$56,800$79,020+$22,220 (+39.1%)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

Raleigh-Cary, NC to New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ Relocation FAQs

About $132,900. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (136.2 in Raleigh-Cary, NC, 181.0 in New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Triangular Relocation & Tax Silo

Raleigh-Cary, NC to New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ: State Paychecks, Rents & Reciprocal Corridor

Reverse Route: New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ to Raleigh-Cary, NC
Relocation: Raleigh-Cary, NC to New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ Overview

Raleigh-Cary, NC to New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ: 2026 federal, state & local income tax, HUD Fair Market Rents & EPI living costs compared on the same.

Quick answers
How much salary do I need in New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ to match $100,000 in Raleigh-Cary, NC?

About $132,900. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (136.2 in Raleigh-Cary, NC, 181.0 in New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Is New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ cheaper than Raleigh-Cary, NC?

EPI's family budgets for a single adult put overall living costs 32.9% higher in New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ than in Raleigh-Cary, NC. The budgets cover housing, food, transportation, health care and other necessities.