Compare / Memphis to Winston-Salem
Memphis, TN vs Winston-Salem, NC
Simple answer
You'd likely save $31 a month in Memphis.
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 Census rent. Census median gross rent differs by $228, with Memphis higher.
Tennessee has no tax on wages. North Carolina taxes wages at a flat 3.99%. Combined sales tax differs by 2.6 percentage points, higher in Tennessee. The effective property tax gap is 0.17 percentage points, higher in North Carolina.
After a move from Tennessee to North Carolina, 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 Memphis lines up with about $74,889 in Winston-Salem on the 2024 all-items price parity. Census median gross rent and the commute figures are 2024. Fair Market Rents are fiscal year 2027.
Memphis
Memphis, TN-MS-AR
- 2-bedroom Fair Market Rent
- $1,301
- HUD area
- Memphis, TN-MS-AR HUD Metro FMR Area
- Census median gross rent
- $1,330
- All-items price parity
- 92.2
- Goods price parity
- 96.2
- Utilities price parity
- 74.1
- Mean commute
- 24.4 min
- Median household income
- $68,124
Winston-Salem
Winston-Salem, NC
- 2-bedroom Fair Market Rent
- $1,332
- HUD area
- Winston-Salem, NC HUD Metro FMR Area
- Census median gross rent
- $1,102
- All-items price parity
- 92.0
- Goods price parity
- 96.6
- Utilities price parity
- 88.4
- Mean commute
- 23.8 min
- Median household income
- $65,903
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.
$74,889
Salary in Winston-Salem that matches the 2024 all-items regional price parity.
$78,606
Gross salary in Winston-Salem whose after-tax pay buys the same basket, using price parities.
$76,787
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 | Tennessee | North Carolina |
|---|---|---|
| State income tax on wages | No wage tax | 3.99% flat |
| Combined sales tax, Jan 1, 2026 | 9.6% | 7.0% |
| Effective property tax, ACS 2024 median / median | 0.45% | 0.61% |
On a $400,000 home, the state median effective rate implies about $1,790 a year in Tennessee and $2,455 in North Carolina. That illustration is not a local bill. Childcare prices are not in the verified dataset for these metros.
Benefits if you land in North Carolina
Same household, $40,000 a year, scored once in Tennessee and once in North Carolina. This is an illustration, not your application.
Food stamps (SNAP)
MemphisLikely eligible
Winston-SalemLikely eligible
Medicaid and CHIP
MemphisLikely eligible
Winston-SalemLikely eligible
WIC
MemphisLikely eligible
Winston-SalemLikely eligible
School meals
MemphisLikely eligible
Winston-SalemLikely eligible
LIHEAP
MemphisMaybe
Winston-SalemMaybe
Earned Income Tax Credit
MemphisLikely eligible
Winston-SalemLikely eligible
Child Tax Credit
MemphisLikely eligible
Winston-SalemLikely eligible
Marketplace premium tax credits
MemphisLikely eligible
Winston-SalemUnlikely
Lifeline phone and internet
MemphisLikely eligible
Winston-SalemLikely eligible
SSI
MemphisUnlikely
Winston-SalemUnlikely
| Program | Memphis | Winston-Salem |
|---|---|---|
| Food stamps (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 | Likely eligible | Unlikely |
| Lifeline phone and internet | Likely eligible | Likely eligible |
| SSI | Unlikely | Unlikely |
Marketplace premium tax credits changes. In Memphis the result is “Likely inside the 2026 subsidy range.” In Winston-Salem it is “Unlikely — Medicaid is the closer program.” North Carolina expanded Medicaid, and this income is in the Medicaid range. Marketplace subsidies are usually not the program in that case.
Related comparisons
From Memphis
The eight largest 2-bedroom Fair Market Rent gaps from Memphis.
- Memphis and San Francisco · rent gap $2,396
- Memphis and San Jose · rent gap $1,971
- Memphis and Boston · rent gap $1,707
- Memphis and New York · rent gap $1,670
- Memphis and Los Angeles · rent gap $1,663
- Memphis and San Diego · rent gap $1,522
- Memphis and Miami · rent gap $1,263
- Memphis and Seattle · rent gap $1,248
Nearby metros
How the salary and tax math works · The reverse city order redirects to this address.