2026 Relocation & Cost Arbitrage Engine

Relocation: Worcester, MA to Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI

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 Worcester, MA to Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI.

Popular Corridors:
Equivalent Salary
$89,900
To maintain parity
Cost of Living Delta
-10.1%
Overall expenditure basket
Annual Tax Delta
-$497
State + local taxes
Annual 1BR Rent Delta
-$1,920
HUD Fair Market Rents
Net Annual Buffer
+$1,423/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

Worcester, MA

COL 128.7
Gross Annual Income $100,000
Federal Income Tax -$13,170
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$7,650
State Income Tax -$4,780
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $74,400
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$19,044
Discretionary Cash Flow $55,356
Target Market
Destination Location

Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI

COL 115.8
Gross Parity Income $89,900
Federal Income Tax -$10,948
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$6,877
State Income Tax -$4,590
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $67,485
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$17,124
Discretionary Cash Flow $50,361

EPI family budgets put living costs 10.1% lower in Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI than in Worcester, MA, so $100,000 in Worcester goes about as far as $89,900 in Minneapolis. HUD's one-bedroom Fair Market Rent is $1,587 a month in Worcester and $1,427 in Minneapolis, $1,920 a year less. On the same $100,000 salary a single filer pays $497 more a year in federal, state and local income tax and FICA in Minneapolis. Taxes and one-bedroom rent together leave you about $1,423 a year better off. The BLS median wage across all occupations is $57,830 in Worcester and $59,320 in Minneapolis.

Itemized Cost of Living Expenditure Arbitrage

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

Expenditure Category Worcester (Monthly) Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington (Monthly) Monthly Delta ($) Difference (%)
Housing (1BR Fair Market Rent)$1,587$1,427-$160-10.1%
Food & Groceries$386$405+$19+4.9%
Transportation$1,085$1,061-$24-2.2%
Healthcare$420$361-$59-14.0%
Other Necessities$563$505-$58-10.3%
Total Taxes (Federal, State, Local, FICA)$2,133$2,175+$42+2.0%

HUD Fair Market Rent Differential

1-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$160/mo (-10.1%)
Worcester: $1,587/mo Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington: $1,427/mo
2-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$309/mo (-15.1%)
Worcester: $2,043/mo Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington: $1,734/mo

EPI Living Wage Benchmark Comparison

1 Adult (No Children) -$2.87/hr (-10.1%)
Worcester: $28.47/hr Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington: $25.60/hr
2 Adults + 1 Child (per earner) -$1.13/hr (-4.3%)
Worcester: $26.40/hr Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington: $25.27/hr

Top Local Occupations Wage Parity

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

Occupation Title Industry Sector Worcester Median Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington Median Nominal Wage Delta Action
Registered Nurse (RN)HealthcareHealthcare$100,240$103,040+$2,800 (+2.8%)View Dossier
General and Operations ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$111,900$103,570-$8,330 (-7.4%)View Dossier
Software EngineerTechnologyTechnology$146,950$130,920-$16,030 (-10.9%)View Dossier
Accountant & AuditorFinanceFinance$94,070$86,500-$7,570 (-8.0%)View Dossier
Management AnalystBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$122,180$101,560-$20,620 (-16.9%)View Dossier
Project Management SpecialistBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$100,290$97,860-$2,430 (-2.4%)View Dossier
Financial ManagerFinanceFinance$170,940$165,620-$5,320 (-3.1%)View Dossier
ElectricianSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$75,510$81,890+$6,380 (+8.4%)View Dossier
CNC MachinistIndustrial ManufacturingIndustrial Manufacturing$64,480$62,070-$2,410 (-3.7%)View Dossier
Computer and Information Systems ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$193,890$178,080-$15,810 (-8.2%)View Dossier
Sales ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$162,810$158,100-$4,710 (-2.9%)View Dossier
Medical and Health Services ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$125,890$126,880+$990 (+0.8%)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

Worcester, MA to Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI Relocation FAQs

About $89,900. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (128.7 in Worcester, MA, 115.8 in Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Triangular Relocation & Tax Silo

Worcester, MA to Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI: State Paychecks, Rents & Reciprocal Corridor

Reverse Route: Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI to Worcester, MA
Relocation: Worcester, MA to Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI Overview

Worcester, MA to Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI: 2026 federal, state & local income tax, HUD Fair Market Rents & EPI living costs compared on the same. Official 2026 economic data for Relocation: Worcester, MA to Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI 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 Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI to match $100,000 in Worcester, MA?

About $89,900. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (128.7 in Worcester, MA, 115.8 in Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Is Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI cheaper than Worcester, MA?

EPI's family budgets for a single adult put overall living costs 10.1% lower in Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI than in Worcester, MA. The budgets cover housing, food, transportation, health care and other necessities.