Austin, TX vs Allentown, PA
Moving from Austin to Allentown? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($428,524 → $363,989 median home) and taxes.
Austin vs Allentown at a glance
Bars scaled to the range across all 200 metros; labels show actual values.
To keep the same standard of living as $100,000 in Austin, TX, you'd need about $100,615 in Allentown, PA (+$615).
Livability — Austin, TX: 70 · Allentown, PA: 63 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 2,450 sqft in Austin vs 2,404 sqft in Allentown ($204 vs $208 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Austin, TX | Allentown, PA | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $19,620 | $22,284 | +$2,664 |
| Groceries | $4,647 | $4,911 | +$265 |
| Transportation | $3,675 | $3,440 | −$235 |
| Utilities | $1,836 | $2,316 | +$480 |
| Insurance | $3,600 | $1,200 | −$2,400 |
| Taxes | $9,558 | $10,058 | +$500 |
| Total | $42,936 | $44,209 | +$1,274 |
Side by side
| Metric | Austin, TX | Allentown, PA |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 98.3 | 98.9 |
| Unemployment rate | 4.30% | 5.48% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 14.8% | 3.6% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 52 | 41 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.59 | $5.63 |
| Median home price | $428,524 | $363,989 |
| Home price ÷ income | 4.6× | 4.6× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | -6.0% | 3.0% |
| Price per square foot | $204 | $208 |
| Median rent | $1,635 | $1,857 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 8.6% | 10.6% |
| Combined sales tax | 8.20% | 6.34% |
| Capital gains tax | None | 3.07% |
| Property tax rate | 1.71% | 1.85% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,800 | $7,000 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $9,500 | $12,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | None | None |
| Avg commute (min) | 27 | 27 |
| Home insurance / yr | $3,600 | $1,200 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $2,100 | $1,600 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $900 | $650 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 17.0 | 21.5 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.00 | 3.55 |
| Violent crime /100k | 430 | 390 |
| Avg summer high °F | 96 | 85 |
| Avg winter low °F | 38 | 22 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 2 | 3 |