?WhereToHQ

Residential comparison · 13 facts

Austin, TX vs New York, NY

Compare the housing, tax, cost, income, safety, school, and climate facts that are available for both places. The table shows the numbers without declaring one city universally better.

A household earning $85,000 in Austin needs about $140,500 in New York to keep the same lifestyle.
Coming from New York, $85,000 of lifestyle costs about $37,500 in Austin.

A few differences

Austin vs New York · facet by facet
FacetAustin, TXNew York, NY
Median home price$540,000$785,000
2-bedroom rent$1,900/mo$4,300/mo
Property tax rate1.8%0.9%
State & local income tax0%7.67%
Sales tax8.25%8.88%
Cost of living index107168
Groceries index97116
Utilities$175/mo$195/mo
Median household income$86,000$76,000
Unemployment rate3.5%5%
Crime index44/10047/100
School rating7.0/106.5/10
Sunny days / year228 days224 days

Data: Census ACS 2024 · BLS · Tax Foundation 2024 brackets · HUD/Zillow · NOAA 1991–2020 · FEMA NRI · Values are shown as reported; no universal winner is implied.

Full profiles: Austin, TX · New York, NY
Questions & answers
Is Austin cheaper than New York?
Austin has the lower day-to-day cost index (107 vs 168 against a national 100). The other differences are shown facet by facet in the table.
What household income in New York equals $85,000 in Austin?
A household earning $85,000 in Austin needs about $140,500 in New York to keep the same lifestyle; coming the other way, $85,000 of New York lifestyle costs about $37,500 in Austin.