2026 Relocation & Cost Arbitrage Engine

Relocation: San Antonio Metro, TX 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 San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX.

Popular Corridors:
Equivalent Salary
$122,600
To maintain parity
Cost of Living Delta
+22.6%
Overall expenditure basket
Annual Tax Delta
$0
State + local taxes
Annual 1BR Rent Delta
+$4,008
HUD Fair Market Rents
Net Annual Buffer
-$4,008/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

San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX

COL 102.4
Gross Annual Income $100,000
Federal Income Tax -$13,170
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$7,650
State Income Tax -$0
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $79,180
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$14,352
Discretionary Cash Flow $64,828
Target Market
Destination Location

Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX

COL 125.6
Gross Parity Income $122,600
Federal Income Tax -$18,158
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$9,379
State Income Tax $0 (No State Tax)
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $95,063
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$18,360
Discretionary Cash Flow $76,703

EPI family budgets put living costs 22.6% higher in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX than in San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX, so $100,000 in San Antonio goes about as far as $122,600 in Austin. HUD's one-bedroom Fair Market Rent is $1,196 a month in San Antonio and $1,530 in Austin, $4,008 a year more. On a $100,000 salary a single filer pays the same total tax in both metros. Taxes and one-bedroom rent together leave you about $4,008 a year worse off. The BLS median wage across all occupations is $47,010 in San Antonio 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 San Antonio-New Braunfels (Monthly) Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos (Monthly) Monthly Delta ($) Difference (%)
Housing (1BR Fair Market Rent)$1,196$1,530+$334+27.9%
Food & Groceries$296$334+$38+12.8%
Transportation$1,029$1,062+$33+3.2%
Healthcare$433$467+$34+7.9%
Other Necessities$438$585+$147+33.6%
Total Taxes (Federal, State, Local, FICA)$1,735$1,735$00.0%

HUD Fair Market Rent Differential

1-Bedroom Fair Market Rent +$334/mo (27.9%)
San Antonio-New Braunfels: $1,196/mo Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $1,530/mo
2-Bedroom Fair Market Rent +$376/mo (26.1%)
San Antonio-New Braunfels: $1,441/mo Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $1,817/mo

EPI Living Wage Benchmark Comparison

1 Adult (No Children) +$5.12/hr (22.6%)
San Antonio-New Braunfels: $22.65/hr Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $27.77/hr
2 Adults + 1 Child (per earner) +$3.72/hr (18.5%)
San Antonio-New Braunfels: $20.06/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 San Antonio-New Braunfels Median Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos Median Nominal Wage Delta Action
General and Operations ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$99,790$117,850+$18,060 (+18.1%)View Dossier
Registered Nurse (RN)HealthcareHealthcare$94,370$97,890+$3,520 (+3.7%)View Dossier
Software EngineerTechnologyTechnology$128,430$134,120+$5,690 (+4.4%)View Dossier
Project Management SpecialistBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$92,130$102,390+$10,260 (+11.1%)View Dossier
Accountant & AuditorFinanceFinance$78,650$83,120+$4,470 (+5.7%)View Dossier
Solutions ArchitectTechnologyTechnology$110,440$129,470+$19,030 (+17.2%)View Dossier
Computer and Information Systems ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$163,490$176,990+$13,500 (+8.3%)View Dossier
Sales ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$124,750$151,760+$27,010 (+21.7%)View Dossier
ElectricianSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$57,010$60,390+$3,380 (+5.9%)View Dossier
Financial ManagerFinanceFinance$144,710$167,180+$22,470 (+15.5%)View Dossier
Management AnalystBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$95,760$106,600+$10,840 (+11.3%)View Dossier
Construction ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$98,450$102,980+$4,530 (+4.6%)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

San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX Relocation FAQs

About $122,600. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (102.4 in San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX, 125.6 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Triangular Relocation & Tax Silo

San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX: State Paychecks, Rents & Reciprocal Corridor

Reverse Route: Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX
Relocation: San Antonio Metro, TX to Austin-Round Rock, TX Overview

San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX: 2026 federal, state & local income tax, HUD Fair Market Rents & EPI living costs compared on.

Quick answers
How much salary do I need in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to match $100,000 in San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX?

About $122,600. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (102.4 in San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX, 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 San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX?

EPI's family budgets for a single adult put overall living costs 22.6% higher in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX than in San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX. The budgets cover housing, food, transportation, health care and other necessities.