Rochester, NY → Buffalo, NY
You'd keep $11 more a month in Buffalo
+$132 a year for the same registered nurse, the same household size, and the same number of bedrooms.
In 2022-2023, 940 households moved Rochester → Buffalo (avg AGI $52,890). 997 went the other way. The whole move →
| Per month | Rochester | Buffalo | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gross pay | $7,500 | $7,422 | −$78 |
| Income and payroll tax | $1,888 | $1,860 | −$28 |
| Take-home pay | $5,612 | $5,562 | −$50 |
| Rent | $1,229 | $1,178 | −$51 |
| Getting around | $526 | $517 | −$9 |
| Groceries | $372 | $372 | $0 |
| Healthcare | $419 | $419 | $0 |
| Utilities | $233 | $233 | $0 |
| Everything else | $326 | $326 | $0 |
| Left over | $2,508 | $2,519 | +$11 |
To break even in Buffalo, you'd need to earn
$89,000
Household gross, versus $90,000 today. That's the salary that leaves you exactly as much at the end of the month as Rochester does now.
The tax difference alone
+$56
A year, in state and local income tax. Effective rates: 25.2% in Rochester, 25.1% in Buffalo.
More about Buffalo
Rochester, NY in full
The highest effective property tax rate in the country, on very cheap houses.
Buffalo, NY in full
Cheap housing, a 21-minute commute, and 85 inches of snow.
The reverse move
Same two cities, but starting from Buffalo on Buffalo wages.
Buffalo → Rochester →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.