2026 Relocation & Cost Arbitrage Engine

Relocation: St. Cloud, MN to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, 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 St. Cloud, MN to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX.

Popular Corridors:
Equivalent Salary
$126,200
To maintain parity
Cost of Living Delta
+26.2%
Overall expenditure basket
Annual Tax Delta
+$5,277
State + local taxes
Annual 1BR Rent Delta
+$6,828
HUD Fair Market Rents
Net Annual Buffer
-$1,551/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

St. Cloud, MN

COL 99.5
Gross Annual Income $100,000
Federal Income Tax -$13,170
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$7,650
State Income Tax -$5,277
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $73,903
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$11,532
Discretionary Cash Flow $62,371
Target Market
Destination Location

Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX

COL 125.6
Gross Parity Income $126,200
Federal Income Tax -$19,022
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$9,654
State Income Tax $0 (No State Tax)
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $97,524
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$18,360
Discretionary Cash Flow $79,164

EPI family budgets put living costs 26.2% higher in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX than in St. Cloud, MN, so $100,000 in St. Cloud goes about as far as $126,200 in Austin. HUD's one-bedroom Fair Market Rent is $961 a month in St. Cloud and $1,530 in Austin, $6,828 a year more. On the same $100,000 salary a single filer pays $5,277 less a year in federal, state and local income tax and FICA in Austin. Taxes and one-bedroom rent together leave you about $1,551 a year worse off. The BLS median wage across all occupations is $50,840 in St. Cloud 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 St. Cloud (Monthly) Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos (Monthly) Monthly Delta ($) Difference (%)
Housing (1BR Fair Market Rent)$961$1,530+$569+59.2%
Food & Groceries$358$334-$24-6.7%
Transportation$1,115$1,062-$53-4.8%
Healthcare$403$467+$64+15.9%
Other Necessities$377$585+$208+55.2%
Total Taxes (Federal, State, Local, FICA)$2,175$1,735-$440-20.2%

HUD Fair Market Rent Differential

1-Bedroom Fair Market Rent +$569/mo (59.2%)
St. Cloud: $961/mo Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $1,530/mo
2-Bedroom Fair Market Rent +$584/mo (47.4%)
St. Cloud: $1,233/mo Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $1,817/mo

EPI Living Wage Benchmark Comparison

1 Adult (No Children) +$5.77/hr (26.2%)
St. Cloud: $22.00/hr Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $27.77/hr
2 Adults + 1 Child (per earner) +$0.62/hr (2.7%)
St. Cloud: $23.16/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 St. Cloud Median Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos Median Nominal Wage Delta Action
General and Operations ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$89,700$117,850+$28,150 (+31.4%)View Dossier
Software EngineerTechnologyTechnology$103,000$134,120+$31,120 (+30.2%)View Dossier
Registered Nurse (RN)HealthcareHealthcare$105,290$97,890-$7,400 (-7.0%)View Dossier
Project Management SpecialistBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$96,390$102,390+$6,000 (+6.2%)View Dossier
Accountant & AuditorFinanceFinance$77,720$83,120+$5,400 (+6.9%)View Dossier
Computer and Information Systems ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$142,510$176,990+$34,480 (+24.2%)View Dossier
Sales ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$124,290$151,760+$27,470 (+22.1%)View Dossier
Solutions ArchitectTechnologyTechnology$105,790$129,470+$23,680 (+22.4%)View Dossier
ElectricianSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$81,890$60,390-$21,500 (-26.3%)View Dossier
Financial ManagerFinanceFinance$135,760$167,180+$31,420 (+23.1%)View Dossier
Marketing ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$134,650$164,920+$30,270 (+22.5%)View Dossier
Management AnalystBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$94,590$106,600+$12,010 (+12.7%)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

St. Cloud, MN to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX Relocation FAQs

About $126,200. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (99.5 in St. Cloud, MN, 125.6 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Triangular Relocation & Tax Silo

St. Cloud, MN to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX: State Paychecks, Rents & Reciprocal Corridor

Reverse Route: Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to St. Cloud, MN
Relocation: St. Cloud, MN to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX Overview

St. Cloud, MN to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX: 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 Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to match $100,000 in St. Cloud, MN?

About $126,200. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (99.5 in St. Cloud, MN, 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 St. Cloud, MN?

EPI's family budgets for a single adult put overall living costs 26.2% higher in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX than in St. Cloud, MN. The budgets cover housing, food, transportation, health care and other necessities.