Moving from Illinois to Delaware: Cost & Tax Comparison
Compare state income tax savings, HUD rent differentials, and household purchasing power adjustments when relocating from Illinois to Delaware.
Data updated · Sources: HUD FY 2027 Fair Market Rents, EPI 2026 Family Budget, 2026 tax tables · Methodology
What changes when you move from Illinois to Delaware
Illinois has a flat 4.95% income tax and Delaware has graduated income tax rates up to 6.6%. On a $100,000 salary a single filer pays $4,805 in state income tax in Illinois and $5,259 in state income tax in Delaware. With federal income tax and FICA unchanged, total tax rises by $454 a year after the move. HUD's one-bedroom Fair Market Rent averages $1,053 a month across Illinois's metro areas and $1,294 across Delaware's (+22.9%). Pay differs too: the BLS median wage across all occupations, weighted by employment in each state's metros, is $54,104 in Illinois and $46,690 in Delaware. City and county income taxes, which some localities add, are not included in these state-level figures; the metro routes below include them.
Metropolitan Corridors Between Illinois & Delaware
Moving from Illinois to Delaware on a $100,000 salary: pay $454 more in total taxes per year; average one-bedroom rent is $1,294 vs $1,053 a month (HUD FMR).
Quick answers
For a single filer earning $100,000 with no local income tax, total federal, FICA and state taxes are $454 higher in Delaware than in Illinois (0.5 percentage points of gross pay). The average HUD one-bedroom Fair Market Rent across Delaware's metros is $1,294 a month, versus $1,053 in Illinois (+22.9%). Taxes and one-bedroom rent combined change by -$3,345 a year.
Illinois: Flat Tax, top rate 4.95%. Delaware: Graduated Brackets, top rate 6.6%. Federal income tax and FICA are the same in both states.