A $90,000 offer in New York leaves a single renter $10,492 a year after 2026 taxes, HUD Fair Market Rent and everyday costs. A $75,000 offer in Austin leaves $24,665 — $14,173 more, despite paying $15,000 less. To match the New York offer, an Austin job needs to pay only $56,304. The number to compare across cities is what is left over, not the salary.
The figures use one adult renting a one-bedroom at HUD FY2027 Fair Market Rent, one car at 12,000 miles a year, the USDA Moderate-Cost food plan (August 2026) and $500 a month each of other goods and services at US prices, scaled by BEA’s 2024 Regional Price Parities. The other-spending line is an editable estimate, not measured data.
Why gross salary misleads
Two things shrink a big-city salary at once. Prices are higher — BEA puts San Francisco at 115.6 and Dallas at 103.1 (US = 100) — and some states and cities tax wages while others do not. A $120,000 salary in San Francisco leaves a single renter $26,808 a year. The same household needs only $78,047 in Austin to keep that amount.
Four cities, one $90,000 offer
| City | 1-BR Fair Market Rent | Total 2026 taxes | Left over at $90,000 | Pay that matches New York at $90,000 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| New York, NY-NJ | $2,729/mo | $25,598 | $10,492 | — (baseline) |
| Austin, TX | $1,530/mo | $17,855 | $35,218 | $56,304 |
| Seattle, WA | $2,180/mo | $19,103 | $23,583 | $71,018 |
| San Francisco, CA | $3,003/mo | $23,006 | $8,883 | $92,693 |
Sources: HUD FY2027 Fair Market Rents (91 FR 56156); BEA RPP 2024; 2026 taxes from the MoveMath engine. New York taxes include the city’s resident income tax; Seattle’s include Washington’s paid-leave and long-term-care payroll premiums; San Francisco’s include California disability insurance.
San Francisco is the only city of the four where $90,000 leaves less than New York. Its taxes are lower than New York’s at this income, but rent is $3,288 a year higher. Check any pair with the cost of living calculator.
How the comparison works
The cost of living calculator takes your household and two metros, then:
- Computes 2026 federal income tax (standard deduction, Child Tax Credit), Social Security and Medicare.
- Adds state income tax, state payroll taxes such as disability or paid-leave premiums, and the principal city’s mandatory local income tax where one exists.
- Prices rent at the HUD Fair Market Rent for the bedrooms your household needs — HUD’s 40th-percentile gross rent, utilities included.
- Scales the USDA food plan and your other spending by BEA price levels, and adds state sales tax on taxable goods.
- Adds fuel at EIA’s latest weekly gasoline price for the state or region.
- Solves for the salary in city B that leaves the same annual surplus as your pay in city A.
Steps to compare two offers
- Fix your household. Adults, children’s ages, filing status, rent or own, number of cars. Adding a child changes taxes, childcare and the bedroom count.
- Run offer A in its city and note what is left over.
- Run offer B in its city with the offered pay.
- Read the matching salary. It is the pay in city B that keeps you exactly where offer A puts you; use it as your floor in negotiation.
- Add what the model leaves out. Health premiums, retirement matches, commuting tolls and parking, and equity differ by employer. Put known monthly costs in “Fixed costs / month.”
What raises the salary you need
- Rent. An extra $500 a month of rent costs more than $6,000 of gross pay, because you pay it from after-tax income. For a single earner near $90,000, MoveMath’s engine puts the extra pay needed at $8,529 in Austin, $9,944 in New York and $10,042 in San Francisco.
- State and local income tax. At $150,000 single, Portland, Oregon adds $12,806 of state income tax, $523 of Metro and Multnomah County income taxes and $1,050 of state payroll taxes. Seattle charges no wage income tax; its payroll premiums are $2,081. Portland’s two local taxes apply only to Oregon taxable income above $128,000 (Metro) and $125,000 (Multnomah County) for single filers.
- Children. Childcare and a second bedroom change the answer more than taxes do. Two adults with a preschooler and a school-age child on $120,000 (two cars, center-based care) come up $5,206 short in New York; in Austin they need $79,088 to be in the same position. Childcare prices vary by county; see cost of living for a family of four.
- Two earners. The calculator keeps your current income split between earners when it solves for the new salary, because Social Security, state payroll premiums and some local taxes apply per earner.
Do not stop at an index score
A price index compares prices, not taxes. Multiplying $90,000 by BEA’s price levels for Austin and New York (98.1 ÷ 112.6) suggests you need $78,409 in Austin. The full after-tax budget says $56,304, because New York’s state and city income taxes and its rent are far higher than its overall price level implies. The New York and Austin metro pages show standard household budgets, including families, and the negotiation guide covers how to use the matching salary.