Miami, FL → Phoenix, AZ
You'd keep $895 more a month in Phoenix
+$10,740 a year for the same registered nurse, the same household size, and the same number of bedrooms.
| Per month | Miami | Phoenix | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gross pay | $7,500 | $7,578 | +$78 |
| Income and payroll tax | $1,525 | $1,707 | +$182 |
| Take-home pay | $5,975 | $5,871 | −$104 |
| Rent | $2,088 | $1,276 | −$812 |
| Getting around | $599 | $586 | −$13 |
| Groceries | $444 | $396 | −$48 |
| Healthcare | $500 | $446 | −$54 |
| Utilities | $278 | $248 | −$30 |
| Everything else | $389 | $347 | −$42 |
| Left over | $1,678 | $2,573 | +$895 |
To break even in Phoenix, you'd need to earn
$75,000
Household gross, versus $90,000 today. That's the salary that leaves you exactly as much at the end of the month as Miami does now.
The tax difference alone
−$1,908
A year, in state and local income tax. Effective rates: 20.3% in Miami, 22.5% in Phoenix.
Miami, FL in full
No income tax, but rents rose faster here than anywhere in the 2020s.
Phoenix, AZ in full
A 2.5% flat income tax, cheap housing for a big metro, and a genuinely dangerous July.
The reverse move
Same two cities, but starting from Phoenix on Phoenix wages.
Phoenix → Miami →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.