on $100k a year, leaving New York
changea dispatch from
austin
TX
30.27°N
97.74°W
Austin runs on breakfast tacos, live music, and a stubborn streak of weirdness that the tech boom hasn't fully smoothed over. The east side reinvents itself every few years and still has the vinyl shops, vintage western wear, and honky-tonks to prove it. Barton Springs holds 68°F year-round and locals plan their summers around it. There's a swimming hole, a taco truck, or a guitar within five blocks of wherever you're standing.
in our guides
the verdict
under New York, every month
Austin is the kind of cheap that changes the math. Same salary, a different life on the other side.
a quick ledger.
$1,583/mo
52% cheaper than New York(vs $3,329/mo)
0%
$894/mo less in state tax than New York
vs 10.73% in New York
$6,750/mo
$2,640 more than New York
gross of federal tax. a comparison, not a paycheck.
$433k
41% cheaper than New York
vs $739k in New York
2.5M
vs 19.5M in New York
field notes, weather & such.
170
pleasant days a year, in austin.
New York edges ahead with 171 pleasant days. Summer asks for something in return: 53 days top 95° here, 1 in New York.
97% fewer events than New York. The pace eases up.
56/100
28% lower than New York
vs 78/100 in New York
Closest outdoor draw: Bastrop State Park, 32 mi.
99/100
1% lower than New York
vs 100/100 in New York
42
80% fewer than New York
vs 215 nonstops in New York
neighbors of austin on the map of tradeoffs:
compare austin with:
