Austin vs Chicago: 20% vs 20%
Austin wins on savings rate by 0 percentage-points. Rent burden: 26% in Austin vs 25% in Chicago. Median incomes: $87,500 (USD) vs $87,500 (USD).
Austin
- Savings rate
- 20%
- Median income
- $87,500 /yr
- Median rent
- $1,900 /mo
- Rent burden
- 26%
- Total core costs
- $3,700 /mo
- Years to FIRE
- 63 yrs
Chicago
- Savings rate
- 20%
- Median income
- $87,500 /yr
- Median rent
- $1,800 /mo
- Rent burden
- 25%
- Total core costs
- $3,600 /mo
- Years to FIRE
- 62 yrs
Verdict
- Savings rate: Austin (20%) beats Chicago (20%) by 0 pp.
- Rent burden: Chicago (25%) is more affordable than Austin (26%).
- FIRE timeline: Chicago reaches financial independence in ~62 years, vs ~63 years in Austin.
- 5-year wealth gap: The 0-pp annual savings-rate gap compounds to ~0 percentage-points of gross income over five years — directly attributable to local cost structure.
Austin vs Chicago — FAQ
Which city has the higher savings rate, Austin or Chicago?+
Austin has the higher savings rate at 20% of gross income, compared to 20% in Chicago. That is a 0 percentage-point gap. Over a 5-year horizon, the gap compounds to roughly 0 percentage-points of gross income — meaningful for anyone optimising long-term wealth.
What is the income gap between Austin and Chicago?+
Median Austin household income (mid-band) is around $87,500/year (USD). In Chicago it is around $87,500/year (USD). That is a gross gap of $0/yr.
Is rent worse in Austin or Chicago?+
Rent burden is higher in Austin: rent eats 26% of gross median income there, vs 25% in Chicago. Median monthly rent is $1,900 in Austin and $1,800 in Chicago. Chicago is the better city for renters at the median income level.
Which city is better for early retirement (FIRE), Austin or Chicago?+
Using a simple 25x-expenses FIRE benchmark, a mid-income earner in Chicago could reach financial independence in roughly 62 years at the current local savings rate, vs 63 years in Austin. Chicago is the better FIRE city for mid-income earners based on local savings rate and cost structure.
What about cost-of-living adjusted — does Austin still win?+
Yes. Savings rate already factors in the local cost of living, because it is calculated as (income − expenses) ÷ income using BLS Consumer Expenditure Survey 2023. Austin's 20% rate is the cost-adjusted figure — it already reflects what residents actually save after paying rent and other expenses. The 0 percentage-point lead over Chicago is real, not a currency illusion.
Methodology
Savings rates from BLS Consumer Expenditure Survey 2023 for Austin (United States) and BLS Consumer Expenditure Survey 2023 for Chicago (United States). Median income is the midpoint of the default income band for each city. Rent burden is annualised rent divided by gross median income. Years to FIRE assumes a 25× annual expenses target, saved at the local benchmark rate, with no investment growth — a deliberately conservative proxy for ordering cities, not a forecast.
Comparisons across different currencies should focus on percentages (savings rate, rent burden), not absolute amounts.