A married couple with two children earning $120,000 ($72,000 + $48,000) pays $2,164 in California income tax and $1,560 in California SDI, and neither in Texas. That is a $3,724 tax saving. But in MoveMath’s full budget for Los Angeles versus Dallas, the household’s money left over after taxes and modeled costs rises by $26,412 a year, from $3,452 to $29,864. Rent, childcare, food and gas all fall at once, and the tax cut is the smallest of those pieces. Model your own household in the cost-of-living calculator.
The tax saving is real but small
Household: two adults, a preschooler and a school-age child. They rent at HUD FY2027 Fair Market Rent (2-bedroom), use center-based childcare (NDCP 2022 prices × 1.2224 CPI), USDA Moderate-Cost food and two cars at 12,000 miles each, with BEA RPP 2024 price adjustments. This is the family profile used on MoveMath’s moving pages.
| Annual | Los Angeles, CA | Dallas, TX | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| State income tax | $2,164 | $0 | $2,164 |
| CA SDI (1.3% of wages) | $1,560 | $0 | $1,560 |
| Total taxes (federal, FICA, state) | $18,544 | $14,820 | $3,724 |
| Rent, 2-bedroom FMR | $35,568 | $21,684 | $13,884 |
| Childcare, preschool + school-age | $26,924 | $21,548 | $5,376 |
| All non-tax costs | $98,004 | $75,316 | $22,688 |
| Left over | $3,452 | $29,864 | $26,412 |
Rent alone saves $13,884, nearly four times the tax saving: $2,964 a month for an LA 2-bedroom against $1,807 in Dallas. Federal tax is the same in both ($5,640 after the $4,400 Child Tax Credit).
What salary keeps you even?
MoveMath’s engine solves for the income in the new city that leaves the same yearly amount as the old one. For this family, $120,000 in Los Angeles matches $87,130 in Dallas, a 27.4% lower salary for the same money left over. Bring that number to a salary negotiation or a remote-work pay discussion. See how to negotiate salary for a relocation.
Single filer: New York City to Tampa
For a single renter earning $75,000:
| Annual | New York City | Tampa, FL | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| NY State income tax | $3,453 | $0 | $3,453 |
| NYC income tax | $2,472 | $0 | $2,472 |
| NY disability + paid family leave | $355 | $0 | $355 |
| State + local + payroll | $6,280 | $0 | $6,280 |
| Rent, 1-bedroom FMR | $32,748 | $19,776 | $12,972 |
| Left over at $75,000 | $1,403 | $22,938 | $21,535 |
$75,000 in New York City leaves the same money as $47,140 in Tampa. That is $27,860 less salary, most of it from rent rather than tax.
What no-income-tax states charge instead
Property tax. Texas metros’ effective rates are 1.61% in Houston, 1.60% in Dallas and 1.54% in Austin (ACS 2020–2024), against 0.67% in the Los Angeles metro. On a $360,000 home, Dallas’s rate means about $5,745 a year, roughly $3,300 more than the same home at LA’s rate. For a buyer that cancels most of the $3,724 tax saving in the example above. See effective property tax rate by county.
Sales tax. Texas’s state rate is 6.25%, Florida’s 6% and Tennessee’s 7%, plus 4% on groceries in Tennessee. California’s 7.25% is higher than all three, and local rates add on everywhere.
Childcare. Prices follow local markets, not tax policy. Averaging each state’s metro prices for center-based infant care (NDCP 2022, CPI-adjusted), Texas comes to $177 a week and California $442. For a family with a baby, that gap can exceed the whole tax saving. See cheapest states for childcare.
The year of the move: part-year taxes
In the year you move, you file a part-year return in the state you leave. California taxes everything you receive while a resident, plus California-source income afterward (FTB). Texas and Florida have no return to file. See do you pay tax in two states the year you move for how the proration works.
Common moves from high-tax to no-tax states
These moving pages use the same two households (Census ACS top metro-to-metro flows):
- Los Angeles to Dallas
- Los Angeles to Houston
- New York to Austin
- Chicago to Dallas
- Chicago to Houston
- Chicago to Miami
- Chicago to Nashville
Related: California, Texas, Florida, Dallas cost of living.