Moving to Texas
Compare Take-Home Pay, Taxes & Cost of Living Before You Relocate
Texas has no state income tax, which can increase take-home pay compared with higher-tax states. The bigger question is whether the full move improves your monthly budget after housing and local living costs are included.
$1,947 a month more · $7,340 upfront
Leave a field blank to use the estimate shown in it. These feed cash needed upfront and the time to earn back the cost.
Is your household better off after this move?
New York City → Austin, comparing what you keep each month now and after the move.
Monthly change
+$1,947
Range +$1,049 to +$2,845
First-year impact
+$19,362
12 months of change minus $4,000 spent. Range +$7,587 to +$31,137
Cash needed upfront
$7,340
Includes a refundable deposit. Range $5,505 to $9,175
Time to earn back the cost
3 mo
Best case 2 mo, worst case 5 mo
Why it changes, per month
No separate current income entered, so pay is assumed unchanged. Enter your current salary in the field above to include a raise or pay cut.
| Per month | Now | After the move |
|---|---|---|
| Take-home pay | $7,493 | $8,533 |
| Left over after housing and other costs | $3,319 | $5,266 |
The range changes only figures this site estimated: housing by 10%, living costs by 15% and one-time costs by 25%, in the worse direction for the low end and the better direction for the high end. Figures you typed do not move. These spreads are planning assumptions.
Estimated by this site, not entered by you
Living costs in both cities are also estimates. Enter your own in the living-cost fields above to replace the new city's.
Example results from sample inputs. Change any field to see your own numbers.
This move leaves you about $1,947 more each month.
You will need about $7,340 upfront, including refundable deposits. The one-time costs are earned back in about 3 months.
8 of these figures are estimates. Replace them with your own in the fields on the left to firm up the answer.
This move looks financially healthy based on your inputs.
| Case | Monthly change | Cash upfront | Months to earn back |
|---|---|---|---|
| Costs higher than estimated | +$1,049 | $9,175 | 5 |
| As estimated | +$1,947 | $7,340 | 3 |
| Costs lower than estimated | +$2,845 | $5,505 | 2 |
| Metric | New York City | Austin |
|---|---|---|
| Net monthly | $7,493 | $8,533 |
| Housing | $2,524est. | $1,840 |
| Essentials | $1,650 | $1,427 |
| Left after essentials | $3,319 | $5,266 |
Austin is roughly 16% less expensive than New York City.
$150,000 is at or above what's typically needed to match your current budget in Austin, which is 16% less expensive than New York City. You may have room to negotiate for equity, remote flexibility, or other terms instead of base salary.
City data and planning assumptions are starting estimates. Replace them with a real rent quote, your own bills and moving quotes in the fields on the left to firm up the answer.
- Offer salary$150,000Sample value
- Current salaryEnter your current salary if it differsSame as offerPlanning assumption
- Monthly rent in the new city$1,670City data
- GroceriesNational budget scaled by the city's BEA price level$510/moCity data
- UtilitiesNational budget scaled by the city's BEA price level$161/moCity data
- TransportationNational budget scaled by the city's BEA price level$255/moCity data
- Dining out$300/moPlanning assumption
- Subscriptions and misc$200/moPlanning assumption
- Movers or truck$1,500Planning assumption
- Travel and storage$500Planning assumption
- Furniture and setup$2,000Planning assumption
- Refundable deposit$3,340Planning assumption
City data · Planning assumption · Sample value. City data is published Census or BEA data for the city you chose; where BEA price levels scale the site's national budgets, the budget itself is a planning assumption. Planning assumptions are the site's starting estimates, not quotes or forecasts. Sample values are placeholders until you enter your own.
What to know before moving to Texas
Texas is one of the most common relocation targets because it has no state income tax, which can improve take-home pay for many earners.
The real question is whether the tax advantage is enough to offset housing costs, property taxes, insurance, and the specific city you plan to move to.
Texas is not automatically cheap. The move only helps if the full income-to-cost ratio improves.
Frequently asked questions about moving to Texas
- Is Texas a good state to move to for affordability?
- It depends on your income, where you are moving from, and which city you are targeting. Texas's lack of state income tax can be a real financial advantage, but only if local housing and living costs still work in your favor.
- Does Texas really have no state income tax?
- Yes. Texas is one of the states with no personal state income tax on earned wages. You still pay federal income tax and FICA.
- How do I compare my current salary to what I would need in Texas?
- Enter your current state and income on one side of the calculator, then select Texasas the destination. The tool estimates take-home pay and monthly budget differences after taxes and housing.
- Is moving to Texas enough by itself to improve my finances?
- Not necessarily. A move helps only if the full income-to-cost ratio improves. Taxes matter, but housing, insurance, transportation, and city-level costs can matter just as much.
Sources and limits
Tax figures come from IRS and state government publications (2026 rules, checked October 13, 2026). Written and maintained by Relocation By Numbers. Sources and limits reviewed October 13, 2026. Found a mistake? Tell us in the feedback box below. Full methodology
Sources
- IRS Rev. Proc. 2025-32: 2026 tax brackets and standard deduction
- IRS Publication 15 (2026): Social Security wage base and payroll tax rates
- IRS Instructions for Form 8959: Additional Medicare Tax thresholds
- State income tax rules: the state agency or legislature documents listed by state
- Local income taxes modeled and their sources
- Employee-paid state payroll programs included, with rates and sources
City rent, home-price and property-tax defaults come from the Census Bureau American Community Survey 2020-2024 (tables B25113, B25109, B25058, B25064, B25077 and B25103). City price levels for housing, goods, utilities and other services come from BEA Regional Price Parities 2024. Insurance and closing-cost defaults, and the dollar budgets for groceries, utilities, transportation, healthcare and childcare, are planning assumptions, not government data; the price-level indexes only scale them by city.
Not included
- Wages only: no self-employment, investment, capital-gain or other non-wage income.
- Standard deduction only; no itemized deductions, tax credits (dependents, education, earned income and others) or alternative minimum tax.
- Single and married-filing-jointly only; no head of household or married filing separately.
- Employers may pay some or all of a state paid-leave program's employee share; the calculators assume the largest employee share the law allows.
- Local income taxes cover a resident who works in the same city; commuter taxes and credits for tax paid to another city are not included.
- State-level averages hide large differences between cities and neighborhoods.