Moving from Texas to Kentucky: Cost & Tax Comparison
Compare state income tax savings, HUD rent differentials, and household purchasing power adjustments when relocating from Texas to Kentucky.
Data updated · Sources: HUD FY 2027 Fair Market Rents, EPI 2026 Family Budget, 2026 tax tables · Methodology
What changes when you move from Texas to Kentucky
Texas has no state income tax on wages and Kentucky has a flat 3.5% income tax. On a $100,000 salary a single filer pays $0 in state income tax in Texas and $3,382 in state income tax in Kentucky. With federal income tax and FICA unchanged, total tax rises by $3,382 a year after the move. HUD's one-bedroom Fair Market Rent averages $1,035 a month across Texas's metro areas and $884 across Kentucky's (-14.6%). Pay differs too: the BLS median wage across all occupations, weighted by employment in each state's metros, is $49,204 in Texas and $47,891 in Kentucky. 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 Texas & Kentucky
Moving from Texas to Kentucky on a $100,000 salary: pay $3,382 more in total taxes per year; average one-bedroom rent is $884 vs $1,035 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 $3,382 higher in Kentucky than in Texas (3.4 percentage points of gross pay). The average HUD one-bedroom Fair Market Rent across Kentucky's metros is $884 a month, versus $1,035 in Texas (-14.6%). Taxes and one-bedroom rent combined change by -$1,570 a year.
Texas: No State Income Tax, top rate 0%. Kentucky: Flat Tax, top rate 3.5%. Federal income tax and FICA are the same in both states.