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Chicago · Registered nurse · $98,500 · One adult, renting a 1-bedroom
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Buffalo skyline
Quintin Soloviev. CC BY 4.0. Photo source · License

#128 of 387 for you

Buffalo: $2,531/mo left

Move scoreB
Alabama: $2,168 left in a typical monthArizona: $2,126 left in a typical monthArkansas: $2,400 left in a typical monthCalifornia: $1,645 left in a typical monthColorado: $2,458 left in a typical monthConnecticut: $2,294 left in a typical monthDelaware: $1,980 left in a typical monthDistrict of Columbia: $2,913 left in a typical monthFlorida: $2,204 left in a typical monthGeorgia: $1,988 left in a typical monthIdaho: $2,056 left in a typical monthIllinois: $2,569 left in a typical monthIndiana: $2,407 left in a typical monthIowa: $2,838 left in a typical monthKansas: $2,391 left in a typical monthKentucky: $2,312 left in a typical monthLouisiana: $2,486 left in a typical monthMaine: $1,949 left in a typical monthMaryland: $2,359 left in a typical monthMassachusetts: $2,076 left in a typical monthMichigan: $2,360 left in a typical monthMinnesota: $2,600 left in a typical monthMississippi: $2,011 left in a typical monthMissouri: $2,581 left in a typical monthMontana: $2,222 left in a typical monthNebraska: $2,541 left in a typical monthNevada: $2,296 left in a typical monthNew Hampshire: $2,794 left in a typical monthNew Jersey: $1,864 left in a typical monthNew Mexico: $2,037 left in a typical monthNew York: $2,320 left in a typical monthNorth Carolina: $2,194 left in a typical monthNorth Dakota: $3,238 left in a typical monthOhio: $2,583 left in a typical monthOklahoma: $2,455 left in a typical monthOregon: $1,624 left in a typical monthPennsylvania: $2,380 left in a typical monthRhode Island: $2,094 left in a typical monthSouth Carolina: $2,108 left in a typical monthSouth Dakota: $2,780 left in a typical monthTennessee: $2,530 left in a typical monthTexas: $2,620 left in a typical monthUtah: $1,822 left in a typical monthVermont: $2,118 left in a typical monthVirginia: $2,326 left in a typical monthWashington: $2,473 left in a typical monthWest Virginia: $2,277 left in a typical monthWisconsin: $2,642 left in a typical monthWyoming: $2,849 left in a typical month
Less leftMore left
  • Property tax 1.70%
  • Rent under 30% of pay
  • Real winters

From your Chicago paycheck, you'd keep +$105/mo versus Chicago.

Compare

Versus Chicago.

Take the quizRank metros from Buffalo

Left each month

$2,531

Versus Chicago

+$105/mo

+$1,260 a year

Local pay

$89,119

This job, this city

Top things to do in Buffalo

More in Buffalo
Paycheck to pocket
Monthly pay$7,427
Tax$1,861
Rent$1,169
Other bills$1,865
Left$2,531

Next

$2,531 / mo left

Alabama: $2,168 left in a typical monthArizona: $2,126 left in a typical monthArkansas: $2,400 left in a typical monthCalifornia: $1,645 left in a typical monthColorado: $2,458 left in a typical monthConnecticut: $2,294 left in a typical monthDelaware: $1,980 left in a typical monthDistrict of Columbia: $2,913 left in a typical monthFlorida: $2,204 left in a typical monthGeorgia: $1,988 left in a typical monthIdaho: $2,056 left in a typical monthIllinois: $2,569 left in a typical monthIndiana: $2,407 left in a typical monthIowa: $2,838 left in a typical monthKansas: $2,391 left in a typical monthKentucky: $2,312 left in a typical monthLouisiana: $2,486 left in a typical monthMaine: $1,949 left in a typical monthMaryland: $2,359 left in a typical monthMassachusetts: $2,076 left in a typical monthMichigan: $2,360 left in a typical monthMinnesota: $2,600 left in a typical monthMississippi: $2,011 left in a typical monthMissouri: $2,581 left in a typical monthMontana: $2,222 left in a typical monthNebraska: $2,541 left in a typical monthNevada: $2,296 left in a typical monthNew Hampshire: $2,794 left in a typical monthNew Jersey: $1,864 left in a typical monthNew Mexico: $2,037 left in a typical monthNew York: $2,320 left in a typical monthNorth Carolina: $2,194 left in a typical monthNorth Dakota: $3,238 left in a typical monthOhio: $2,583 left in a typical monthOklahoma: $2,455 left in a typical monthOregon: $1,624 left in a typical monthPennsylvania: $2,380 left in a typical monthRhode Island: $2,094 left in a typical monthSouth Carolina: $2,108 left in a typical monthSouth Dakota: $2,780 left in a typical monthTennessee: $2,530 left in a typical monthTexas: $2,620 left in a typical monthUtah: $1,822 left in a typical monthVermont: $2,118 left in a typical monthVirginia: $2,326 left in a typical monthWashington: $2,473 left in a typical monthWest Virginia: $2,277 left in a typical monthWisconsin: $2,642 left in a typical monthWyoming: $2,849 left in a typical monthChicagoBuffalo
Less leftMore left
Buffalo · this breakdownChicago · home

The month

One earner. 1 bd.

See full breakdown
  • Taxes$1,861
  • Rent$1,169
  • Other living costs$1,865
  • Left over$2,531

Pay and tax, per year

Gross household pay
$89,119
Federal income tax
−$11,220
Social Security and Medicare
−$6,818
State income tax (NY)
−$4,299
Take-home pay
$66,782
Effective tax rate
25.1%

Living costs, per month

Rent, 1br
$1,169
Groceries
$372
Getting around
$517
Healthcare
$419
Utilities and internet
$233
Everything else
$326
Total spending
$3,034

Left over each month

$7,427 gross, minus $1,861 in tax and $3,034 in living costs.

$2,531

County by county

2 counties. Rent is what residents pay, not asking rent.

Population, rent, home value, income and commute by county in Buffalo, NY
CountyPeopleMedian rent2-bed rentHome valueIncomeCommute
Erie CountyNY950k82%$1,037$1,046$217,400$71,17521 min
Niagara CountyNY211k18%$870$888$177,400$67,80922 min

Census ACS 2023. “—” is not published.

Working remotely

If the paycheck stays the same

One adult, one bedroom, $120,000 held flat in every city. That leaves $4,184 a month here after tax and rent. One-bedroom rent in that math is $1,169.

Work from home
10.4% of workers
ACS 2024 1-year
Home internet
76.0% of households
Cable, fiber optic, or DSL
Paid to move, remote job
No open remote grant on this metro

Worked-from-home share is Census B08006_017E divided by all workers (ACS 2024 1-year, or ACS 2023 5-year when the 1-year table has no metro). Internet is households with cable, fiber optic, or DSL, from ACS 2023 5-year.

Best cities for remote workersMoving from New York

USAJOBS

Federal jobs that pay relocation here

45 open postings marked relocation-eligible. Fetched October 10, 2026.

  • Behavioral Health Provider (O-3/O-4/O-5 Billet) Non-Supervisory

    ICE Health Service Corps (IHSC) (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) · $1–$150,000 a year

    Batavia, NY · Buffalo, NY · Closes October 21, 2026

  • Program Analyst

    Department of State Headquarters · $106,437–$172,980 a year

    Hot Springs, AR · Tucson, AZ · Los Angeles, CA · +10 more · Hot Springs, AR, Tucson, AZ, Los Angeles, CA +10 · Closes October 21, 2026

  • Program Analyst (Data Analyst)

    Department of State Headquarters · $125,776–$197,200 a year

    Hot Springs, AR · Tucson, AZ · Los Angeles, CA · +10 more · Hot Springs, AR, Tucson, AZ, Los Angeles, CA +10 · Closes October 21, 2026

  • Supervisory Program Manager (Assistant Director)

    Department of State Headquarters · $125,776–$197,200 a year

    Hot Springs, AR · Tucson, AZ · Los Angeles, CA · +27 more · Hot Springs, AR, Tucson, AZ, Los Angeles, CA +26 · Closes October 22, 2026

  • Physician - Chief of Staff

    Western New York Health Care System (Veterans Health Administration) · $330,000–$360,000 a year

    Buffalo, NY · Buffalo, NY · Closes October 30, 2026

40 more on the full list.

All federal jobs that pay relocation

The place

166 sunny days. July high 80°F. January nights 18°F. 21 min commute. A car per adult.

Weather
166 sunny days, 80°F in July, 18°F January nights
Getting around
A car per adult
Average commute
21 minutes each way
Size
1.2M people
Buying instead
Median home $209,600. About $1,549/mo with 20% down.
Taxes
New York income tax. Sales tax 8.5%, property tax 1.70%.

Fit

Money left over
65
Sun and mild weather
45
Being in a big city
58
Public school districts in Buffalo

12 largest districts, NCES 2024-2025. This is districts, not every school. Students, school count, and pupils per teacher.

Public school districts in Buffalo
DistrictCityStudentsSchoolsPupils / teacher
Buffalo City School DistrictBuffalo30,0776110.5
Williamsville Central School DistrictEast Amherst9,7181311.5
Niagara Falls City School DistrictNiagara Falls6,9161116
Kenmore-Tonawanda Union Free School DistrictBuffalo6,5051010.9
West Seneca Central School DistrictWest Seneca6,011912
Lancaster Central School DistrictLancaster5,434712.4
Orchard Park Central School DistrictWest Seneca4,835611.5
Frontier Central School DistrictHamburg4,549610.9
Lockport City School DistrictLockport4,280711.5
Clarence Central School DistrictClarence4,122610.9
Sweet Home Central School DistrictAmherst3,850612.3
Hamburg Central School DistrictHamburg3,361613.1

Chicago vs Buffalo

Full comparison

More on this city

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Moving from Buffalo

Take-home by job in Buffalo

Pay and leftover for every job in Buffalo

Other New York metros

All New York metros

Questions

How is take-home pay in Buffalo calculated?

Buffalo is in New York, which taxes wage income. Take-home is a local salary minus federal tax, payroll tax, and that state tax. Leftover is what remains after rent.

What does rent cost in Buffalo?

About $1,169 for a one-bedroom and $1,392 for a two-bedroom in Buffalo, NY.

How do I compare Buffalo with another city?

Put Buffalo next to another city on the same job and household. The gap is the tax bill and the rent.

Also look at

Estimate, not a quote. How we figure this.

Compare Buffalo