Moving from Phoenix to Lake Havasu City
Phoenix to Lake Havasu City: $526 less leftover
$2,050/mo leftover in Lake Havasu City vs $2,576 in Phoenix after tax and rent ($526 less). −$6,312 a year — not a moving-company quote.
Phoenix leftover
$2,576
a month after tax and rent
Lake Havasu City leftover
$2,050
−$526 vs Phoenix
Home
Only when you tap. We match the nearest metro and don't keep the coordinates.
Destination
Leftover is not a cost-of-living index. Leftover vs a COL index
Who already made this move
In 2022-2023, 480 households moved Phoenix → Lake Havasu City (about 794 people, average AGI $54,904). 565 households went the other way.
Source: IRS SOI county-to-county migration. Not a moving company; not a recommendation.
| Per month | Phoenix | Lake Havasu City |
|---|---|---|
| Take-home | $5,875 | $5,089 |
| Rent | $1,277 | $1,039 |
| All other costs | $2,022 | $2,000 |
| Left over | $2,576 | $2,050 |
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 Phoenix and Lake Havasu City 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.
Full line-by-line comparison →
What the move itself costs
About 239 road miles, 1 bedroom. Typical ranges, not quotes.
- Full-service mover
- $1,800–$3,350
- Container or pod
- $1,200–$2,300
- Rent a truck
- $500–$900
Other moves from Phoenix
Dig into Lake Havasu City
Paycheck
Take-home pay after tax and rent, and what's left at the end of the month.
Who moved
Which metros people actually left and arrived from, according to IRS tax returns.
Rent vs buy
Asking rent, the median home, property tax, and months to a down payment.
Monthly costs
Groceries, getting around, utilities, healthcare and childcare at your household size.
Daily life
Homicide and firearm death rates, heat, cars and commute.
Kids
Public-school enrollment, pupil–teacher ratio, bedrooms and childcare.
Getting there
Typical cost to get here, then leftover after tax and rent — not a moving-company directory.
Questions
Is the cost of living lower in Lake Havasu City than Phoenix?
A one-bedroom is about $1,277 in Phoenix versus $1,039 in Lake Havasu City. On a one-adult, one-bedroom household, leftover is about $526 a month lower in Lake Havasu City. Change the job or household on the comparison to see your number.
Does Lake Havasu City have state income tax?
Lake Havasu City is in Arizona, which taxes wage income.
Did people actually move from Phoenix to Lake Havasu City?
When IRS county-to-county data covers this pair, the page lists how many households made the Phoenix → Lake Havasu City move and their average AGI. Leftover after tax and rent is shown for the same household on both sides.