Buffalo, NY vs Austin, TX
Moving from Buffalo to Austin? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($288,316 → $428,524 median home) and taxes.
Buffalo vs Austin 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 Buffalo, NY, you'd need about $103,535 in Austin, TX (+$3,535).
Livability — Buffalo, NY: 61 · Austin, TX: 70 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 2,775 sqft in Buffalo vs 2,450 sqft in Austin ($180 vs $204 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Buffalo, NY | Austin, TX | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $17,328 | $19,620 | +$2,292 |
| Groceries | $4,868 | $4,647 | −$222 |
| Transportation | $3,895 | $3,675 | −$220 |
| Utilities | $3,180 | $1,836 | −$1,344 |
| Insurance | $1,600 | $3,600 | +$2,000 |
| Taxes | $18,192 | $9,558 | −$8,634 |
| Total | $49,063 | $42,936 | −$6,128 |
Side by side
| Metric | Buffalo, NY | Austin, TX |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 94.9 | 98.3 |
| Unemployment rate | 5.10% | 4.30% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 2.4% | 14.8% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 42 | 42 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.40 | $5.59 |
| Median home price | $288,316 | $428,524 |
| Home price ÷ income | 4.3× | 4.6× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 4.8% | -6.0% |
| Price per square foot | $180 | $204 |
| Median rent | $1,444 | $1,635 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 15.9% | 8.6% |
| Combined sales tax | 8.52% | 8.20% |
| Capital gains tax | 10.90% | None |
| Property tax rate | 2.26% | 1.71% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $7,800 | $6,800 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $17,000 | $9,500 |
| Vehicle property tax | None | None |
| Avg commute (min) | 22 | 27 |
| Home insurance / yr | $1,600 | $3,600 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $2,100 | $2,100 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $800 | $900 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 29.4 | 17.0 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.45 | 3.00 |
| Natural gas / mo | $98 | $52 |
| Water & sewer / mo | $87 | $134 |
| Home internet / mo | $76 | $83 |
| Violent crime /100k | 350 | 430 |
| Avg summer high °F | 83 | 96 |
| Avg winter low °F | 16 | 38 |
| Annual precipitation (in) | 40.7 | 36.3 |
| Annual snowfall (in) | 95.4 | 0.2 |
| Sunshine (% possible) | 48% | 60% |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 5 | 2 |