San Jose, CA vs Wichita, KS
Simple answer
You'd likely save $2,229 a month in Wichita.
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 145.7 points (San Jose 211.9, Wichita 66.2).
California taxes wages at rates up to 13.30%. Kansas taxes wages at rates up to 5.58%. Combined sales tax differs by 0.3 percentage points, higher in California. The effective property tax gap is 0.54 percentage points, higher in Kansas.
After a move from California to Kansas, 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 San Jose lines up with about $60,413 in Wichita on the 2024 all-items price parity. Census median gross rent and the commute figures are 2024. Fair Market Rents are fiscal year 2027.
San Jose
San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA
- 2-bedroom Fair Market Rent
- $3,272
- HUD area
- San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA HUD Metro FMR Area
- Census median gross rent
- $2,827
- All-items price parity
- 110.4
- Goods price parity
- 105.2
- Utilities price parity
- 156.7
- Mean commute
- 27.5 min
- Median household income
- $164,801
Wichita
Wichita, KS
- 2-bedroom Fair Market Rent
- $1,043
- HUD area
- Wichita, KS HUD Metro FMR Area
- Census median gross rent
- $1,010
- All-items price parity
- 88.9
- Goods price parity
- 94.0
- Utilities price parity
- 88.5
- Mean commute
- 19.3 min
- Median household income
- $71,810
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.
$60,413
Salary in Wichita that matches the 2024 all-items regional price parity.
$59,366
Gross salary in Wichita whose after-tax pay buys the same basket, using price parities.
$23,907
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 | California | Kansas |
|---|---|---|
| State income tax on wages | up to 13.30% | up to 5.58% |
| Combined sales tax, Jan 1, 2026 | 9.0% | 8.7% |
| Effective property tax, ACS 2024 median / median | 0.71% | 1.25% |
On a $400,000 home, the state median effective rate implies about $2,828 a year in California and $4,999 in Kansas. That illustration is not a local bill. Childcare prices are not in the verified dataset for these metros.
Benefits if you land in Kansas
Same household, $40,000 a year, scored once in California and once in Kansas. This is an illustration, not your application.
Food stamps (SNAP)
San JoseLikely eligible
WichitaLikely eligible
Medicaid and CHIP
San JoseLikely eligible
WichitaLikely eligible
WIC
San JoseLikely eligible
WichitaLikely eligible
School meals
San JoseLikely eligible
WichitaLikely eligible
LIHEAP
San JoseMaybe
WichitaMaybe
Earned Income Tax Credit
San JoseLikely eligible
WichitaLikely eligible
Child Tax Credit
San JoseLikely eligible
WichitaLikely eligible
Marketplace premium tax credits
San JoseUnlikely
WichitaLikely eligible
Lifeline phone and internet
San JoseLikely eligible
WichitaLikely eligible
SSI
San JoseUnlikely
WichitaUnlikely
| Program | San Jose | Wichita |
|---|---|---|
| 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 | Unlikely | Likely eligible |
| Lifeline phone and internet | Likely eligible | Likely eligible |
| SSI | Unlikely | Unlikely |
Marketplace premium tax credits changes. In San Jose the result is “Unlikely — Medicaid is the closer program.” In Wichita it is “Likely inside the 2026 subsidy range.” California expanded Medicaid, and this income is in the Medicaid range. Marketplace subsidies are usually not the program in that case.
Related comparisons
From San Jose
The eight largest 2-bedroom Fair Market Rent gaps from San Jose.
- San Jose and McAllen · rent gap $2,255
- San Jose and Little Rock · rent gap $2,151
- San Jose and Toledo · rent gap $2,127
- San Jose and El Paso · rent gap $2,126
- San Jose and Baton Rouge · rent gap $2,123
- San Jose and Columbia · rent gap $2,046
- San Jose and Tulsa · rent gap $2,043
- San Jose and Akron · rent gap $2,041
Nearby metros
How the salary and tax math works · The reverse city order redirects to this address.