Chicago, IL vs McAllen, TX
Simple answer
You'd likely save $994 a month in McAllen.
This is the HUD 2-bedroom fair-market rent for October 2026 through September 2027. It is not your lease.
The largest cost gap in this pair is housing prices. The BEA housing price parity differs by 56.1 points (Chicago 112.0, McAllen 55.9).
Illinois taxes wages at a flat 4.95%. Texas has no tax on wages. Combined sales tax differs by 0.8 percentage points, higher in Illinois. The effective property tax gap is 0.61 percentage points, higher in Illinois.
After a move from Illinois to Texas, these benefit results change for a family of four at $40,000 and a single adult at $18,000: Marketplace premium tax credits, Medicaid and CHIP.
A $75,000 salary in Chicago lines up with about $62,186 in McAllen on the 2024 all-items price parity. Census median gross rent and the commute figures are 2024. Fair Market Rents are fiscal year 2027.
Chicago
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN
- 2-bedroom Fair Market Rent
- $2,011
- HUD area
- Chicago-Joliet-Naperville, IL HUD Metro FMR Area
- Census median gross rent
- $1,469
- All-items price parity
- 103.6
- Goods price parity
- 107.3
- Utilities price parity
- 83.6
- Mean commute
- 30.9 min
- Median household income
- $90,770
McAllen
McAllen-Edinburg-Mission, TX
- 2-bedroom Fair Market Rent
- $1,017
- HUD area
- McAllen-Edinburg-Mission, TX MSA
- Census median gross rent
- $971
- All-items price parity
- 85.9
- Goods price parity
- 93.8
- Utilities price parity
- 81.2
- Mean commute
- 22.9 min
- Median household income
- $56,720
Equivalent salary
The first number keeps the same place in the national price level. The second also runs 2026 federal income tax, employee Social Security and Medicare, and a simplified state income tax. Groceries use the BEA goods price parity, not a grocery receipt.
$62,186
Salary in McAllen that matches the 2024 all-items regional price parity.
$57,163
Gross salary in McAllen whose after-tax pay buys the same basket, using price parities.
$37,929
Scales the salary by the ratio of HUD 2-bedroom Fair Market Rents. Rent is not the whole budget.
Taxes on the two sides of the move
| Tax | Illinois | Texas |
|---|---|---|
| State income tax on wages | 4.95% flat | No wage tax |
| Combined sales tax, Jan 1, 2026 | 9.0% | 8.2% |
| Effective property tax, ACS 2024 median / median | 1.92% | 1.31% |
On a $400,000 home, the state median effective rate implies about $7,694 a year in Illinois and $5,246 in Texas. That illustration is not a local bill. Childcare prices are not in the verified dataset for these metros.
Benefits if you land in Texas
Same household, $40,000 a year, scored once in Illinois and once in Texas. This is an illustration, not your application.
| Program | Chicago | McAllen |
|---|---|---|
| SNAP | Likely eligible | Likely eligible |
| Medicaid and CHIP | Likely eligible | Likely eligible |
| WIC | Likely eligible | Likely eligible |
| School meals | Likely eligible | Likely eligible |
| LIHEAP | Maybe | Maybe |
| Earned Income Tax Credit | Likely eligible | Likely eligible |
| Child Tax Credit | Likely eligible | Likely eligible |
| Marketplace premium tax credits | Unlikely | Likely eligible |
| Lifeline phone and internet | Likely eligible | Likely eligible |
| SSI | Unlikely | Unlikely |
Marketplace premium tax credits changes. In Chicago the result is “Unlikely — Medicaid is the closer program.” In McAllen it is “Likely inside the 2026 subsidy range.” Illinois expanded Medicaid, and this income is in the Medicaid range. Marketplace subsidies are usually not the program in that case.
Related comparisons
From Chicago
The eight largest 2-bedroom Fair Market Rent gaps from Chicago.
- Chicago and San Francisco · rent gap $1,686
- Chicago and San Jose · rent gap $1,261
- Chicago and Boston · rent gap $997
- Chicago and Wichita · rent gap $968
- Chicago and New York · rent gap $960
- Chicago and Los Angeles · rent gap $953
- Chicago and Little Rock · rent gap $890
- Chicago and Toledo · rent gap $866
Nearby metros
How the salary and tax math works · The reverse city order redirects to this address.