Moving from Salt Lake City to Houston
You'd keep $590 more a month in Houston
+$7,080 a year for the same registered nurse, the same household size, and the same number of bedrooms.
Salt Lake City leftover
$2,547
a month after tax and rent
Houston leftover
$3,137
+$590 vs Salt Lake City
In 2022-2023, 225 households moved Salt Lake City → Houston (avg AGI $80,480). 234 went the other way. The whole move →
| Per month | Salt Lake City | Houston | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gross pay | $7,708 | $7,942 | +$234 |
| Income and payroll tax | $1,937 | $1,656 | −$281 |
| Take-home pay | $5,771 | $6,286 | +$515 |
| Rent | $1,269 | $1,199 | −$70 |
| Getting around | $519 | $572 | +$53 |
| Groceries | $396 | $380 | −$16 |
| Healthcare | $446 | $428 | −$18 |
| Utilities | $248 | $238 | −$10 |
| Everything else | $347 | $333 | −$14 |
| Left over | $2,547 | $3,137 | +$590 |
To break even in Houston, you'd need to earn
$85,000
Household gross, versus $92,500 today. That's the salary that leaves you exactly as much at the end of the month as Salt Lake City does now.
The tax difference alone
+$4,209
A year, in state and local income tax. Texas has no wage income tax.
More about Houston
Salt Lake City, UT in full
Four ski resorts inside an hour and a 23-minute average commute.
Houston, TX in full
The cheapest housing of any top-10 metro, paid for in property tax and humidity.
The reverse move
Same two cities, but starting from Houston on Houston wages.
Houston → Salt Lake City →Questions
Is the cost of living lower in Houston than Salt Lake City?
A one-bedroom is about $1,269 in Salt Lake City versus $1,199 in Houston. On a one-adult, one-bedroom household, leftover is about $590 a month higher in Houston. Change the job or household on the comparison to see your number.
Does Houston have state income tax?
Houston is in Texas, which has no state income tax.
What changes if you move from Salt Lake City to Houston?
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.
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.