Texas
$28,060
Combined bill · #14 least taxed of 51
- Paycheck tax
- $20,820
- Property tax
- $5,600
- Sales tax
- $1,640
- Share of wages
- 28.1%
- State wage income tax
- None
Florida keeps the modeled household bill about $2,724 lower than Texas. One fixed household — single filer, $100,000 wages, $400,000 home, $20,000 of taxable spending — so only state tax policy moves the total.
By Sammy S. · Founder · AuthorUpdated for 2026
Lower combined household bill
About $2,724 less per year — roughly $227 a month on identical assumptions.
$28,060
Combined bill · #14 least taxed of 51
$25,336
Combined bill · #5 least taxed of 51
Every row uses the same household. The gap column is the annual dollar difference between Texas and Florida.
| Line | Texas | Florida | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|
| Paycheck tax (federal + state + FICA) | $20,820 | $20,820 | $0 |
| Property tax ($400,000 home) | $5,600 | $3,120 | $2,480 |
| Sales tax ($20,000 basket) | $1,640 | $1,396 | $244 |
| Combined household bill | $28,060 | $25,336 | $2,724 |
| Share of gross wages | 28.1% | 25.3% | 2.7 pts |
| Money left after the three lines | $71,940 | $74,664 | $2,724 |
Paycheck tax (federal + state + FICA)
Gap $0
Property tax ($400,000 home)
Gap $2,480
Sales tax ($20,000 basket)
Gap $244
Combined household bill
Gap $2,724
Share of gross wages
Gap 2.7 pts
Money left after the three lines
Gap $2,724
Home value and taxable spending stay fixed, so the movement here comes from state wage brackets.
$75,000 wages
Florida lower by $2,724
$100,000 wages
Florida lower by $2,724
$150,000 wages
Florida lower by $2,724
Federal tax and employee Social Security and Medicare apply in both states, so only the state income tax line moves — $0 here.
1.40% in Texas vs 0.78% in Florida on the same $400,000 home — $2,480 apart.
8.20% vs 6.98% combined state and average local rate on $20,000 of purchases — $244 apart.
Most state-tax comparisons stop at the paycheck. This one holds a whole household constant — $100,000 of wages for a single filer, a $400,000 owner-occupied home, and $20,000 of taxable spending — then adds paycheck tax, property tax, and sales tax together so a state cannot look cheap simply by shifting the burden.
Florida models the lower total by $2,724 a year. Read the line-item table before acting on it — the winner often wins on one levy while losing another.
The point of the vignette is comparability, not prediction. Change the home value or the spending assumption and the ordering can move, which is exactly why the hub lets you switch salary presets.
Texas: $20,820 paycheck, $5,600 property, $1,640 sales. Florida: $20,820 paycheck, $3,120 property, $1,396 sales.
One side of this pair has no wage income tax. That advantage is real on the paycheck line, but states without an income tax generally recover revenue through property or sales tax — which is why the totals here can be much closer than headlines suggest.
If you rent rather than own, mentally drop the property line — though landlords price property tax into rent, so the saving is smaller than removing the row entirely.
At $75,000 the modeled gap is $2,724 (lower in Florida). At $150,000 it is $2,724 (lower in Florida).
Property and sales tax stay fixed across the salary ladder because the home value and spending assumptions do not change — so movement in the gap comes almost entirely from progressive wage brackets.
That means the $75,000–$150,000 ladder is the fastest way to see whether the winner here is robust or an artifact of the $100,000 column.
Local income taxes, vehicle and excise taxes, insurance costs, income-tax credits for dependents or renters, and every itemized deduction sit outside the vignette.
The property line uses each state's effective owner-occupied rate, not your county's bill: two homes of identical value in the same state can differ by thousands depending on the district and exemptions.
Tax Foundation state-and-local burden estimates appear on the hub as a separate benchmark. They measure incidence across all residents and are not added into the household total here.
Short definitions so the wage, property, and sales lines add up the way you expect.
Paycheck tax + property tax + sales tax under one fixed vignette. On $100,000 that is $28,060 in Texas and $25,336 in Florida.
Household total ÷ gross wages, so property and sales tax are expressed against income: 28.1% vs 25.3% here. It can exceed a pure paycheck rate.
Statewide average tax as a share of owner-occupied home value — 1.40% in Texas and 0.78% in Florida. Your county rate can differ.
State rate plus the average local add-on: 8.20% vs 6.98%. Groceries and services are often exempt or taxed differently.
“No income tax means a cheaper household.”
Property and sales tax often make up the difference. In this pair the totals are $28,060 and $25,336 once all three levies are counted.
“Property tax only matters if the home is expensive.”
On a $400,000 home the modeled bills here are $5,600 and $3,120 — for many households the second-largest line after the paycheck.
“Sales tax is too small to change a comparison.”
On $20,000 of taxable spending the modeled sales tax is $1,640 vs $1,396. It rarely decides a move, but it does move the total.
“This is my actual tax bill.”
It is a standardized vignette — single filer, standard deduction, fixed home value and spending. Your filing status, county, exemptions, and habits all change the number.
Before treating the household total as a relocation decision.
Compare any two states
Combined wage, property, and sales tax on the $100,000 household vignette.
Estimates for one fixed household, 2026 rules. Statewide average property and sales rates — local wage taxes, city levies, excise taxes, credits, and itemized deductions are excluded. Not tax advice.