2026 Relocation & Cost Arbitrage Engine

Relocation: Tampa-St. Petersburg, FL to Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY

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 Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL to Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY.

Popular Corridors:
Equivalent Salary
$84,800
To maintain parity
Cost of Living Delta
-15.2%
Overall expenditure basket
Annual Tax Delta
-$4,860
State + local taxes
Annual 1BR Rent Delta
-$5,340
HUD Fair Market Rents
Net Annual Buffer
+$480/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

Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL

COL 124.5
Gross Annual Income $100,000
Federal Income Tax -$13,170
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$7,650
State Income Tax -$0
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $79,180
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$19,776
Discretionary Cash Flow $59,404
Target Market
Destination Location

Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY

COL 105.7
Gross Parity Income $84,800
Federal Income Tax -$9,826
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$6,487
State Income Tax -$3,982
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $64,505
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$14,436
Discretionary Cash Flow $50,069

EPI family budgets put living costs 15.2% lower in Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY than in Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL, so $100,000 in Tampa goes about as far as $84,800 in Buffalo. HUD's one-bedroom Fair Market Rent is $1,648 a month in Tampa and $1,203 in Buffalo, $5,340 a year less. On the same $100,000 salary a single filer pays $4,860 more a year in federal, state and local income tax and FICA in Buffalo. Taxes and one-bedroom rent together leave you about $480 a year better off. The BLS median wage across all occupations is $48,940 in Tampa and $50,790 in Buffalo.

Itemized Cost of Living Expenditure Arbitrage

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

Expenditure Category Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater (Monthly) Buffalo-Cheektowaga (Monthly) Monthly Delta ($) Difference (%)
Housing (1BR Fair Market Rent)$1,648$1,203-$445-27.0%
Food & Groceries$376$376$00.0%
Transportation$950$971+$21+2.2%
Healthcare$472$504+$32+6.8%
Other Necessities$603$417-$186-30.8%
Total Taxes (Federal, State, Local, FICA)$1,735$2,140+$405+23.3%

HUD Fair Market Rent Differential

1-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$445/mo (-27.0%)
Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater: $1,648/mo Buffalo-Cheektowaga: $1,203/mo
2-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$494/mo (-25.8%)
Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater: $1,917/mo Buffalo-Cheektowaga: $1,423/mo

EPI Living Wage Benchmark Comparison

1 Adult (No Children) -$4.18/hr (-15.2%)
Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater: $27.54/hr Buffalo-Cheektowaga: $23.36/hr
2 Adults + 1 Child (per earner) -$0.43/hr (-1.8%)
Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater: $23.42/hr Buffalo-Cheektowaga: $22.99/hr

Top Local Occupations Wage Parity

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

Occupation Title Industry Sector Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater Median Buffalo-Cheektowaga Median Nominal Wage Delta Action
Registered Nurse (RN)HealthcareHealthcare$85,470$99,060+$13,590 (+15.9%)View Dossier
General and Operations ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$103,670$103,280-$390 (-0.4%)View Dossier
Accountant & AuditorFinanceFinance$78,990$82,120+$3,130 (+4.0%)View Dossier
Software EngineerTechnologyTechnology$130,450$127,850-$2,600 (-2.0%)View Dossier
Management AnalystBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$95,840$84,710-$11,130 (-11.6%)View Dossier
Project Management SpecialistBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$97,780$101,180+$3,400 (+3.5%)View Dossier
Financial ManagerFinanceFinance$157,480$164,230+$6,750 (+4.3%)View Dossier
ElectricianSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$57,450$77,930+$20,480 (+35.6%)View Dossier
Medical and Health Services ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$124,980$132,720+$7,740 (+6.2%)View Dossier
Sales ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$132,010$163,090+$31,080 (+23.5%)View Dossier
Computer and Information Systems ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$168,470$172,650+$4,180 (+2.5%)View Dossier
HVAC/R TechnicianSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$50,540$62,180+$11,640 (+23.0%)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

Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL to Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY Relocation FAQs

About $84,800. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (124.5 in Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL, 105.7 in Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Triangular Relocation & Tax Silo

Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL to Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY: State Paychecks, Rents & Reciprocal Corridor

Reverse Route: Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY to Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL
Relocation: Tampa-St. Petersburg, FL to Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY Overview

Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL to Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY: 2026 federal, state & local income tax, HUD Fair Market Rents & EPI living costs compared on. Official 2026 economic data for Relocation: Tampa-St. Petersburg, FL to Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY compiled from Bureau of Labor Statistics OEWS surveys, HUD Fair Market Rents, and statutory tax codes.

Quick answers
How much salary do I need in Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY to match $100,000 in Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL?

About $84,800. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (124.5 in Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL, 105.7 in Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Is Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY cheaper than Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL?

EPI's family budgets for a single adult put overall living costs 15.2% lower in Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY than in Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL. The budgets cover housing, food, transportation, health care and other necessities.