2026 Relocation & Cost Arbitrage Engine

Relocation: St. Louis, MO-IL to San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA

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. Louis, MO-IL to San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA.

Popular Corridors:
Equivalent Salary
$176,300
To maintain parity
Cost of Living Delta
+76.3%
Overall expenditure basket
Annual Tax Delta
-$1,541
State + local taxes
Annual 1BR Rent Delta
+$22,788
HUD Fair Market Rents
Net Annual Buffer
-$24,329/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. Louis, MO-IL

COL 102.3
Gross Annual Income $100,000
Federal Income Tax -$13,170
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$7,650
State Income Tax -$3,670
Local / City Tax -$1,000
Net Annual Take-Home $74,510
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$13,248
Discretionary Cash Flow $61,262
Target Market
Destination Location

San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA

COL 180.4
Gross Parity Income $176,300
Federal Income Tax -$31,046
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$13,487
State Income Tax -$12,007
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $117,468
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$36,036
Discretionary Cash Flow $81,432

EPI family budgets put living costs 76.3% higher in San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA than in St. Louis, MO-IL, so $100,000 in St. Louis goes about as far as $176,300 in San Francisco. HUD's one-bedroom Fair Market Rent is $1,104 a month in St. Louis and $3,003 in San Francisco, $22,788 a year more. On the same $100,000 salary a single filer pays $1,541 more a year in federal, state and local income tax and FICA in San Francisco. Taxes and one-bedroom rent together leave you about $24,329 a year worse off. The BLS median wage across all occupations is $49,990 in St. Louis and $74,260 in San Francisco.

Itemized Cost of Living Expenditure Arbitrage

Category-by-category breakdown of monthly baseline consumption between origin and destination.

Expenditure Category St. Louis (Monthly) San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont (Monthly) Monthly Delta ($) Difference (%)
Housing (1BR Fair Market Rent)$1,104$3,003+$1,899+172.0%
Food & Groceries$373$469+$96+25.7%
Transportation$1,018$968-$50-4.9%
Healthcare$427$608+$181+42.4%
Other Necessities$411$852+$441+107.3%
Total Taxes (Federal, State, Local, FICA)$2,124$2,253+$129+6.1%

HUD Fair Market Rent Differential

1-Bedroom Fair Market Rent +$1,899/mo (172.0%)
St. Louis: $1,104/mo San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont: $3,003/mo
2-Bedroom Fair Market Rent +$2,348/mo (174.1%)
St. Louis: $1,349/mo San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont: $3,697/mo

EPI Living Wage Benchmark Comparison

1 Adult (No Children) +$17.28/hr (76.4%)
St. Louis: $22.63/hr San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont: $39.91/hr
2 Adults + 1 Child (per earner) +$20.45/hr (97.1%)
St. Louis: $21.07/hr San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont: $41.52/hr

Top Local Occupations Wage Parity

BLS median wage comparisons across benchmark roles between both metropolitan labor markets.

Occupation Title Industry Sector St. Louis Median San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont Median Nominal Wage Delta Action
General and Operations ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$93,140$149,990+$56,850 (+61.0%)View Dossier
Software EngineerTechnologyTechnology$129,030$186,640+$57,610 (+44.6%)View Dossier
Registered Nurse (RN)HealthcareHealthcare$83,180$186,610+$103,430 (+124.3%)View Dossier
Accountant & AuditorFinanceFinance$78,880$110,730+$31,850 (+40.4%)View Dossier
Project Management SpecialistBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$100,510$135,040+$34,530 (+34.4%)View Dossier
Computer and Information Systems ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$167,130$232,890+$65,760 (+39.3%)View Dossier
Management AnalystBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$101,100$126,730+$25,630 (+25.4%)View Dossier
Solutions ArchitectTechnologyTechnology$108,450$161,700+$53,250 (+49.1%)View Dossier
Financial ManagerFinanceFinance$158,780$216,150+$57,370 (+36.1%)View Dossier
Sales ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$123,870$170,810+$46,940 (+37.9%)View Dossier
Medical and Health Services ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$106,200$166,310+$60,110 (+56.6%)View Dossier
ElectricianSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$77,170$92,830+$15,660 (+20.3%)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. Louis, MO-IL to San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA Relocation FAQs

About $176,300. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (102.3 in St. Louis, MO-IL, 180.4 in San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Triangular Relocation & Tax Silo

St. Louis, MO-IL to San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA: State Paychecks, Rents & Reciprocal Corridor

Reverse Route: San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA to St. Louis, MO-IL
Relocation: St. Louis, MO-IL to San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA Overview

St. Louis, MO-IL to San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA: 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 San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA to match $100,000 in St. Louis, MO-IL?

About $176,300. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (102.3 in St. Louis, MO-IL, 180.4 in San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Is San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA cheaper than St. Louis, MO-IL?

EPI's family budgets for a single adult put overall living costs 76.3% higher in San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA than in St. Louis, MO-IL. The budgets cover housing, food, transportation, health care and other necessities.