2026 Relocation & Cost Arbitrage Engine

Relocation: Sacramento-Roseville, CA 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 Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom, CA to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX.

Popular Corridors:
Equivalent Salary
$86,900
To maintain parity
Cost of Living Delta
-13.1%
Overall expenditure basket
Annual Tax Delta
+$6,211
State + local taxes
Annual 1BR Rent Delta
-$3,156
HUD Fair Market Rents
Net Annual Buffer
+$9,367/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

Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom, CA

COL 144.6
Gross Annual Income $100,000
Federal Income Tax -$13,170
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$7,650
State Income Tax -$4,911
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $72,969
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$21,516
Discretionary Cash Flow $51,453
Target Market
Destination Location

Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX

COL 125.6
Gross Parity Income $86,900
Federal Income Tax -$10,288
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$6,648
State Income Tax $0 (No State Tax)
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $69,964
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$18,360
Discretionary Cash Flow $51,604

EPI family budgets put living costs 13.1% lower in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX than in Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom, CA, so $100,000 in Sacramento goes about as far as $86,900 in Austin. HUD's one-bedroom Fair Market Rent is $1,793 a month in Sacramento and $1,530 in Austin, $3,156 a year less. On the same $100,000 salary a single filer pays $6,211 less a year in federal, state and local income tax and FICA in Austin. Taxes and one-bedroom rent together leave you about $9,367 a year better off. The BLS median wage across all occupations is $59,750 in Sacramento 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 Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom (Monthly) Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos (Monthly) Monthly Delta ($) Difference (%)
Housing (1BR Fair Market Rent)$1,793$1,530-$263-14.7%
Food & Groceries$384$334-$50-13.0%
Transportation$1,044$1,062+$18+1.7%
Healthcare$577$467-$110-19.1%
Other Necessities$640$585-$55-8.6%
Total Taxes (Federal, State, Local, FICA)$2,253$1,735-$518-23.0%

HUD Fair Market Rent Differential

1-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$263/mo (-14.7%)
Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom: $1,793/mo Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $1,530/mo
2-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$384/mo (-17.4%)
Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom: $2,201/mo Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $1,817/mo

EPI Living Wage Benchmark Comparison

1 Adult (No Children) -$4.20/hr (-13.1%)
Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom: $31.97/hr Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $27.77/hr
2 Adults + 1 Child (per earner) -$5.17/hr (-17.9%)
Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom: $28.95/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 Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom Median Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos Median Nominal Wage Delta Action
General and Operations ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$118,460$117,850-$610 (-0.5%)View Dossier
Registered Nurse (RN)HealthcareHealthcare$171,460$97,890-$73,570 (-42.9%)View Dossier
Software EngineerTechnologyTechnology$139,640$134,120-$5,520 (-4.0%)View Dossier
Management AnalystBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$82,990$106,600+$23,610 (+28.4%)View Dossier
Accountant & AuditorFinanceFinance$92,110$83,120-$8,990 (-9.8%)View Dossier
Project Management SpecialistBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$124,350$102,390-$21,960 (-17.7%)View Dossier
Computer and Information Systems ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$165,270$176,990+$11,720 (+7.1%)View Dossier
Sales ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$113,980$151,760+$37,780 (+33.1%)View Dossier
ElectricianSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$74,830$60,390-$14,440 (-19.3%)View Dossier
Solutions ArchitectTechnologyTechnology$110,980$129,470+$18,490 (+16.7%)View Dossier
Financial ManagerFinanceFinance$163,090$167,180+$4,090 (+2.5%)View Dossier
Medical and Health Services ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$159,350$126,110-$33,240 (-20.9%)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

Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom, CA to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX Relocation FAQs

About $86,900. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (144.6 in Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom, CA, 125.6 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Triangular Relocation & Tax Silo

Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom, CA to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX: State Paychecks, Rents & Reciprocal Corridor

Reverse Route: Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom, CA
Relocation: Sacramento-Roseville, CA to Austin-Round Rock, TX Overview

Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom, CA to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX: 2026 federal, state & local income tax, HUD Fair Market Rents & EPI living costs compared. Official 2026 economic data for Relocation: Sacramento-Roseville, CA 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 Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom, CA?

About $86,900. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (144.6 in Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom, CA, 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 Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom, CA?

EPI's family budgets for a single adult put overall living costs 13.1% lower in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX than in Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom, CA. The budgets cover housing, food, transportation, health care and other necessities.