Texas cities dominate the list when it comes to growing the $100,00 salary the most. Thanks to no state income tax and low cost of living, 7 out of 10 of the top 10 cities are located in the Lone Star State doing. After deducting taxes and adjusting for living expenses, her $100,000 average salary across her 10 Texas cities analyzed in the study is worth $77,885.
1. Memphis, Tennessee
A person earning $100,000 a year in Memphis takes home $74,515 after deducting federal and local taxes (Tennessee does not tax earned income). Given that the city’s cost of living is about 14% lower than the national average, these after-tax earnings are actually worth $86,444 after adjusting for living expenses.
2. El Paso, Texas
A $100,000 salary in El Paso is worth $84,966 after taxes are deducted and adjusted for local living costs. A person earning $100,000 a year in this West Texas city of over 678,000 residents takes home $74,515 after tax. El Paso’s cost of living is only 87.7% of the national average.
3. Oklahoma City, OK
A person making $100,000 in Oklahoma City would take home $70,302 after tax. But thanks to the lowest cost of living in our survey, after-tax earnings are worth a lot more: $84,498.
4. Corpus Christi, Texas
An annual income of $100,000 is worth $83,443 in Corpus Christi after deducting taxes and adjusting for local living costs. Located on the Gulf Coast of Texas, the cost of living in Corpus Christi is 10.7% lower than the national average.
5. Lubbock, Texas
A person earning $100,000 a year in Lubbock could take home $74,515 after deducting taxes from their salary. The cost of living in Lubbock is just 89.4% of the national average, so after adjusting for cost of living, the person’s take home income is actually worth him $83,350.
6. Houston, Texas
Like other Texas cities in the top 10, Houston’s $100,000 salary will be reduced to $74,515 after tax. However, when adjusted for Houston’s cost of living, those earnings are worth $81,350, which is 91.8% of the national average.
7 (draw).San Antonio, Fort Worth, Arlington, TX
A $100,000 salary is worth the same amount in three Texas cities: San Antonio, Fort Worth, and Arlington. With the same tax treatment and no state income tax, in each city a person earns $100,000, he takes home $74,515. Adjusting for the cost of living in all three cities, that money is worth $80,124, which puts him 7% below the national average.
10. St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis rounds out the top ten. Taxes take his $100,000 salary down to $69,531, but the city’s low cost of living (87% of the national average) makes the after-tax dollar even higher. As a result, her $100,000 salary in St. Louis is worth him $79,921 after deducting taxes and adjusting for living expenses.
