2026 Relocation & Cost Arbitrage Engine

Relocation: Richmond, VA to Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, 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 Richmond, VA to Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX.

Popular Corridors:
Equivalent Salary
$93,700
To maintain parity
Cost of Living Delta
-6.3%
Overall expenditure basket
Annual Tax Delta
+$4,936
State + local taxes
Annual 1BR Rent Delta
+$228
HUD Fair Market Rents
Net Annual Buffer
+$4,708/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

Richmond, VA

COL 131.3
Gross Annual Income $100,000
Federal Income Tax -$13,170
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$7,650
State Income Tax -$4,936
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $74,244
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$18,204
Discretionary Cash Flow $56,040
Target Market
Destination Location

Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX

COL 123.0
Gross Parity Income $93,700
Federal Income Tax -$11,784
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$7,168
State Income Tax $0 (No State Tax)
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $74,748
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$18,432
Discretionary Cash Flow $56,316

EPI family budgets put living costs 6.3% lower in Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX than in Richmond, VA, so $100,000 in Richmond goes about as far as $93,700 in Dallas. HUD's one-bedroom Fair Market Rent is $1,517 a month in Richmond and $1,536 in Dallas, $228 a year more. On the same $100,000 salary a single filer pays $4,936 less a year in federal, state and local income tax and FICA in Dallas. Taxes and one-bedroom rent together leave you about $4,708 a year better off. The BLS median wage across all occupations is $51,460 in Richmond 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 Richmond (Monthly) Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington (Monthly) Monthly Delta ($) Difference (%)
Housing (1BR Fair Market Rent)$1,517$1,536+$19+1.3%
Food & Groceries$376$342-$34-9.0%
Transportation$1,089$1,011-$78-7.2%
Healthcare$389$459+$70+18.0%
Other Necessities$579$582+$3+0.5%
Total Taxes (Federal, State, Local, FICA)$2,146$1,735-$411-19.2%

HUD Fair Market Rent Differential

1-Bedroom Fair Market Rent +$19/mo (1.3%)
Richmond: $1,517/mo Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington: $1,536/mo
2-Bedroom Fair Market Rent +$156/mo (9.4%)
Richmond: $1,651/mo Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington: $1,807/mo

EPI Living Wage Benchmark Comparison

1 Adult (No Children) -$1.84/hr (-6.3%)
Richmond: $29.04/hr Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington: $27.20/hr
2 Adults + 1 Child (per earner) -$0.55/hr (-2.3%)
Richmond: $23.47/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 Richmond Median Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington Median Nominal Wage Delta Action
General and Operations ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$108,670$111,010+$2,340 (+2.2%)View Dossier
Registered Nurse (RN)HealthcareHealthcare$93,580$101,420+$7,840 (+8.4%)View Dossier
Software EngineerTechnologyTechnology$132,120$133,290+$1,170 (+0.9%)View Dossier
Project Management SpecialistBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$102,170$98,900-$3,270 (-3.2%)View Dossier
Accountant & AuditorFinanceFinance$84,220$82,620-$1,600 (-1.9%)View Dossier
Computer and Information Systems ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$180,640$173,810-$6,830 (-3.8%)View Dossier
Financial ManagerFinanceFinance$173,140$169,200-$3,940 (-2.3%)View Dossier
Sales ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$168,590$144,290-$24,300 (-14.4%)View Dossier
ElectricianSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$61,350$59,010-$2,340 (-3.8%)View Dossier
Management AnalystBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$95,660$102,860+$7,200 (+7.5%)View Dossier
Solutions ArchitectTechnologyTechnology$111,070$127,360+$16,290 (+14.7%)View Dossier
Medical and Health Services ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$129,660$121,640-$8,020 (-6.2%)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

Richmond, VA to Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX Relocation FAQs

About $93,700. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (131.3 in Richmond, VA, 123.0 in Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Triangular Relocation & Tax Silo

Richmond, VA to Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX: State Paychecks, Rents & Reciprocal Corridor

Reverse Route: Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX to Richmond, VA
Relocation: Richmond, VA to Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX Overview

Richmond, VA to Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, 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 Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX to match $100,000 in Richmond, VA?

About $93,700. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (131.3 in Richmond, VA, 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 Richmond, VA?

EPI's family budgets for a single adult put overall living costs 6.3% lower in Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX than in Richmond, VA. The budgets cover housing, food, transportation, health care and other necessities.