2026 Relocation & Cost Arbitrage Engine

Relocation: Seattle-Tacoma, WA 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 Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX.

Popular Corridors:
Equivalent Salary
$79,100
To maintain parity
Cost of Living Delta
-20.9%
Overall expenditure basket
Annual Tax Delta
$0
State + local taxes
Annual 1BR Rent Delta
-$7,800
HUD Fair Market Rents
Net Annual Buffer
+$7,800/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

Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA

COL 158.8
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 -$26,160
Discretionary Cash Flow $53,020
Target Market
Destination Location

Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX

COL 125.6
Gross Parity Income $79,100
Federal Income Tax -$8,572
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$6,051
State Income Tax $0 (No State Tax)
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $64,477
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$18,360
Discretionary Cash Flow $46,117

EPI family budgets put living costs 20.9% lower in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX than in Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA, so $100,000 in Seattle goes about as far as $79,100 in Austin. HUD's one-bedroom Fair Market Rent is $2,180 a month in Seattle and $1,530 in Austin, $7,800 a year less. 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 $7,800 a year better off. The BLS median wage across all occupations is $72,610 in Seattle 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 Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue (Monthly) Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos (Monthly) Monthly Delta ($) Difference (%)
Housing (1BR Fair Market Rent)$2,180$1,530-$650-29.8%
Food & Groceries$421$334-$87-20.7%
Transportation$1,020$1,062+$42+4.1%
Healthcare$398$467+$69+17.3%
Other Necessities$826$585-$241-29.2%
Total Taxes (Federal, State, Local, FICA)$1,735$1,735$00.0%

HUD Fair Market Rent Differential

1-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$650/mo (-29.8%)
Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue: $2,180/mo Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $1,530/mo
2-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$732/mo (-28.7%)
Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue: $2,549/mo Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $1,817/mo

EPI Living Wage Benchmark Comparison

1 Adult (No Children) -$7.35/hr (-20.9%)
Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue: $35.12/hr Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $27.77/hr
2 Adults + 1 Child (per earner) -$7.32/hr (-23.5%)
Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue: $31.10/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 Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue Median Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos Median Nominal Wage Delta Action
Software EngineerTechnologyTechnology$167,280$134,120-$33,160 (-19.8%)View Dossier
General and Operations ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$146,030$117,850-$28,180 (-19.3%)View Dossier
Registered Nurse (RN)HealthcareHealthcare$128,260$97,890-$30,370 (-23.7%)View Dossier
Project Management SpecialistBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$130,380$102,390-$27,990 (-21.5%)View Dossier
Accountant & AuditorFinanceFinance$99,370$83,120-$16,250 (-16.4%)View Dossier
Computer and Information Systems ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$214,680$176,990-$37,690 (-17.6%)View Dossier
Management AnalystBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$126,340$106,600-$19,740 (-15.6%)View Dossier
Solutions ArchitectTechnologyTechnology$136,120$129,470-$6,650 (-4.9%)View Dossier
ElectricianSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$101,780$60,390-$41,390 (-40.7%)View Dossier
Sales ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$184,320$151,760-$32,560 (-17.7%)View Dossier
Financial ManagerFinanceFinance$185,550$167,180-$18,370 (-9.9%)View Dossier
Marketing ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$175,850$164,920-$10,930 (-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

Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX Relocation FAQs

About $79,100. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (158.8 in Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA, 125.6 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Triangular Relocation & Tax Silo

Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX: State Paychecks, Rents & Reciprocal Corridor

Reverse Route: Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA
Relocation: Seattle-Tacoma, WA to Austin-Round Rock, TX Overview

Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA 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: Seattle-Tacoma, WA 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 Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA?

About $79,100. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (158.8 in Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA, 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 Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA?

EPI's family budgets for a single adult put overall living costs 20.9% lower in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX than in Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA. The budgets cover housing, food, transportation, health care and other necessities.