Dallas vs Waco leftover
Moving to Waco costs you $712 a month
$2,327/mo leftover in Waco vs $3,039 in Dallas after tax and rent ($712 less). −$8,544 a year for the same registered nurse, the same household size, and the same number of bedrooms. Not a cost-of-living index.
Dallas leftover
$3,039
a month after tax and rent
Waco leftover
$2,327
−$712 vs Dallas
Compare Dallas to another metro
Same paycheck. Try a different city next to Dallas.
Monthly gap
Dallas → Waco
$712
less / month in Dallas
$2,327 in Waco · $3,039 in Dallas · One adult, renting a 1-bedroom
Home
Only when you tap. We match the nearest metro and don't keep the coordinates.
Destination
In 2022-2023, 942 households moved Dallas → Waco (avg AGI $70,300). 1,086 went the other way. The whole move →
−$712 / mo
| Per month | Dallas | Waco | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gross pay | $7,958 | $6,538 | −$1,420 |
| Income and payroll tax | $1,661 | $1,240 | −$421 |
| Take-home pay | $6,298 | $5,299 | −$999 |
| Rent | $1,258 | $1,108 | −$150 |
| Getting around | $580 | $549 | −$31 |
| Groceries | $392 | $363 | −$29 |
| Healthcare | $441 | $408 | −$33 |
| Utilities | $245 | $227 | −$18 |
| Everything else | $343 | $317 | −$26 |
| Left over | $3,039 | $2,327 | −$712 |
To break even in Waco, you'd need to earn
$90,500
Household gross, versus $95,500 today. That's the salary that leaves you exactly as much at the end of the month as Dallas does now.
The tax difference alone
$0
A year, in state and local income tax. Texas has no wage income tax.
More about Waco
Dallas, TX in full
No income tax, endless new construction, and a 1.5% property tax bill.
Waco, TX in full
No state income tax, a median 2-bedroom asking rent of $1,319 and 221 sunny days; commutes average 22 minutes.
The reverse move
Same two cities, but starting from Waco on Waco wages.
Waco → Dallas →Questions
Is the cost of living lower in Waco than Dallas?
A one-bedroom is about $1,258 in Dallas versus $1,108 in Waco. On a one-adult, one-bedroom household, leftover is about $712 a month lower in Waco. Change the job or household on the comparison to see your number.
Does Waco have state income tax?
Waco is in Texas, which has no state income tax.
What changes if you move from Dallas to Waco?
Take-home pay is recalculated under Texas tax, rent is priced at the same bedroom count, and leftover is the gap. The from-to page also lists IRS households that already made the move, when that data exists.
Leftover is take-home after federal, state and city wage tax, minus asking rent at the bedroom count you set, minus a modelled month of groceries, utilities, healthcare, transport and childcare. It is not a cost-of-living index and not a moving quote. The dollar gap between Dallas and Waco moves when you change the job, remote versus local pay, or bedrooms. How the math works · Leftover vs a COL index · Why a cheaper COL% can still lose leftover.
Rent is Zillow's asking rent for each metro; taxes and living costs are modelled. An estimate, not a quote or tax advice. How this is calculated.