Tucson, AZ → Los Angeles, CA
Moving to Los Angeles costs you $817 a month
−$9,804 a year for the same registered nurse, the same household size, and the same number of bedrooms.
In 2022-2023, 617 households moved Tucson → Los Angeles (avg AGI $80,267). 844 went the other way. The whole move →
| Per month | Tucson | Los Angeles | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gross pay | $6,958 | $8,757 | +$1,798 |
| Income and payroll tax | $1,508 | $2,381 | +$873 |
| Take-home pay | $5,450 | $6,376 | +$925 |
| Rent | $1,022 | $2,276 | +$1,254 |
| Getting around | $547 | $674 | +$127 |
| Groceries | $376 | $476 | +$100 |
| Healthcare | $423 | $536 | +$113 |
| Utilities | $235 | $298 | +$63 |
| Everything else | $329 | $417 | +$88 |
| Left over | $2,518 | $1,701 | −$817 |
To break even in Los Angeles, you'd need to earn
$121,000
Household gross, versus $83,500 today. That's the salary that leaves you exactly as much at the end of the month as Tucson does now.
The tax difference alone
−$4,077
A year, in state and local income tax. Effective rates: 21.7% in Tucson, 27.2% in Los Angeles.
More about Los Angeles
Tucson, AZ in full
Phoenix weather and hiking at a serious discount, on lower wages.
Los Angeles, CA in full
Perfect weather, deep job market, and a car payment you can't avoid.
The reverse move
Same two cities, but starting from Los Angeles on Los Angeles wages.
Los Angeles → Tucson →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.