Moving from Texas to New Jersey: Cost & Tax Comparison
Compare state income tax savings, HUD rent differentials, and household purchasing power adjustments when relocating from Texas to New Jersey.
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 New Jersey
Texas has no state income tax on wages and New Jersey has graduated income tax rates up to 10.75%. On a $100,000 salary a single filer pays $0 in state income tax in Texas and $4,180 in state income tax in New Jersey. With federal income tax and FICA unchanged, total tax rises by $4,180 a year after the move. HUD's one-bedroom Fair Market Rent averages $1,035 a month across Texas's metro areas and $1,820 across New Jersey's (+75.9%). Pay differs too: the BLS median wage across all occupations, weighted by employment in each state's metros, is $49,204 in Texas and $55,749 in New Jersey. 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 & New Jersey
Moving from Texas to New Jersey on a $100,000 salary: pay $4,180 more in total taxes per year; average one-bedroom rent is $1,820 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 $4,180 higher in New Jersey than in Texas (4.2 percentage points of gross pay). The average HUD one-bedroom Fair Market Rent across New Jersey's metros is $1,820 a month, versus $1,035 in Texas (+75.9%). Taxes and one-bedroom rent combined change by -$13,602 a year.
Texas: No State Income Tax, top rate 0%. New Jersey: Graduated Brackets, top rate 10.75%. Federal income tax and FICA are the same in both states.