The States Where a $100,000 Salary Goes Furthest, Ranked. Here’s Where Texas Falls

One state stretches a $100,000 salary to cover 129% of what a typical household spends there in a year.

Another state’s exact same $100,000 covers barely 60%.

That’s nearly a 70-percentage-point gap on the identical paycheck.

These are the states where a $100,000 salary goes furthest, and here’s where Texas lands among them.

Note: This is general information, not financial advice. Salary figures and cost-of-living rankings are subject to change.

How This Ranking Works

GoBankingRates built this ranking by comparing a $100,000 salary against what a typical household spends every year in each state, using the government’s own household spending survey and a well-known interstate cost-of-living index.

The result is a single percentage for every state: How much of a typical year’s costs that salary covers.

Higher means further.

1. Oklahoma

A $100,000 salary covers about 129% of what a typical Oklahoma household spends in a year, the highest share of any state on this list.

Housing runs cheap across much of the state outside Oklahoma City and Tulsa.

The average Oklahoman making $100,000 has more extra money to save every year than any other American making the same amount.

2. Mississippi

Mississippi takes second place in this ranking: $100,000 there covers about 126.3% of a typical year’s spending.

Grocery bills, rent, and gas all run below the national norm across much of the state.

That’s money saved every month.

3. Alabama

How far does $100,000 stretch in Alabama?

It covers about 125.9% of typical annual costs there, enough for third place in this ranking.

Outside Birmingham and Huntsville, home prices stay well under what many coastal states charge.

Coastal prices don’t apply here.

4. Missouri

Missouri lands fourth on this list.

A $100,000 salary there covers roughly 125.3% of what a typical household spends in a year.

St. Louis and Kansas City both post housing costs under the national median.

Every year, that adds up.

5. West Virginia

West Virginia’s $100,000 salary covers about 124.5% of typical yearly costs there, good for fifth place in this ranking.

The Mountain State carries some of the lowest home prices in the country.

That’s extra breathing room.

6. Iowa

Sixth place on this list belongs to Iowa, where $100,000 covers about 123.1% of a typical year’s spending.

Des Moines has grown fast, but rents there still trail many metro areas twice its size.

Growth hasn’t caught up.

7. Kansas

In Kansas, $100,000 covers roughly 122.9% of typical annual costs, enough for seventh place in this ranking.

Wichita’s cost of living runs below the national average, and the rest of the state runs even lower.

Cheap living meets wide-open spaces.

8. Michigan

Michigan holds eighth place on this list, and $100,000 there covers about 122.8% of what a typical household spends in a year.

Detroit’s housing market recovered from its lows, but prices there still sit under many Midwest peers.

The Great Lakes come free.

9. Tennessee

Tennessee sits ninth in this ranking.

A $100,000 salary there stretches to cover about 122.5% of typical yearly costs.

Like Texas, Tennessee charges no state income tax, and Nashville’s home prices have risen fast while the rest of the state hasn’t followed.

Rural Tennessee stays affordable.

10. Arkansas

Arkansas takes tenth place in this ranking, where $100,000 covers about 121.9% of a typical year’s spending.

Little Rock and Fayetteville both post rents well under the national median.

That’s a lot left over.

Where Texas Lands in the Ranking

Texas ranks 15th on the full salary list, where $100,000 covers about 120.1% of what a typical household spends in a year.

A 2019 amendment to the Texas Constitution locked in that income-tax advantage, requiring another statewide vote before the state could ever create a personal income tax.

Property taxes claw some of that back, though.

Texas charges an effective rate of 1.63%, the seventh highest in the country.

Also, a typical home in Austin runs $507,622, well above what a state ranked this high usually charges.

Landing 15th out of 50 still beats 35 other states outright, though.

Why the Same $100,000 Buys So Differently

Housing explains much of the swing in this ranking.

Hawaii sits dead last on GoBankingRates’ full list, where the same $100,000 salary covers only 60.5% of a typical year’s spending.

Shipping costs and a limited supply of buildable land push home prices there far past what many mainland states charge.

Location changes everything.