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Dallas vs Fort Worth

Dallas, TX  ·  Fort Worth, TX

TL;DR

Dallas cost-of-living index is 105 vs 99 for Fort Worth (US = 100). Median home: $370,000 vs $330,000. Median rent: $1,275/mo vs $1,354/mo.

Source: Zillow ZHVI/ZORI · Census ACS, 2026-04-19

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Fort Worth is 6% cheaper than Dallas overall.

Written by Jere Salmisto, Founder & Quantitative Systems Builder, CalcFi·Reviewed by CalcFi Editorial·Last reviewed 2026-04-19

Home Price

Dallas: $370,000

Fort: $330,000

Monthly Rent

Dallas: $1,275/mo

Fort: $1,354/mo

COL Index

Dallas: 105

Fort: 99

Median Income

Dallas: $69,400

Fort: $66,200

Side-by-Side Comparison

Metric
Dallas
Fort Worth
Winner
🏠

Median Home Price

$370,000
$330,000
Fort Worth
🏢

Monthly Rent (Median)

$1,275/mo
$1,354/mo
Dallas
💰

Median Household Income

$69,400
$66,200
Dallas
📋

Property Tax Rate

1.8%
1.8%
Tied
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Cost of Living Index

100 = national average

105
99
Fort Worth
🚗

Avg. Commute

28 min
27 min
Fort Worth
📈

Unemployment Rate

3.8%
3.9%
Dallas
👥

Median Age

34.8 yrs
33.9 yrs
Dallas

What This Means For You

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Buying Power

A $100,000 salary in Dallas has the same purchasing power as $94,286 in Fort Worth — based on each city's cost of living index.

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Housing

Homes in Fort Worth cost 11% more (-$40,000 extra). Expect a larger mortgage and down payment.

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Renting

Renting in Dallas saves you $79/month — $948 per year. Median rent: $1,275/mo in Dallas vs $1,354/mo in Fort Worth.

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Property Taxes

On a median-priced home, Dallas owners pay roughly $6,660/year in property taxes vs $5,940/year in Fort Worth. Rates are comparable.

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Local Earnings

Median household income is $69,400 in Dallas and $66,200 in Fort Worth. Incomes are similar, so cost of living differences matter more.

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Daily Commute

Average commute is 28 minutes in Dallas vs 27 minutes in Fort Worth. Commute times are nearly identical.

Salary Equivalence

To maintain the same lifestyle when moving from Dallas to Fort Worth, here's the salary you'd need:

Salary in DallasEquivalent in Fort WorthDifference
$50,000$47,143-$2,857
$75,000$70,714-$4,286
$100,000$94,286-$5,714
$150,000$141,429-$8,571
$200,000$188,571-$11,429

* Calculated using cost of living indices (national average = 100). Does not account for state income tax differences.

Run the Numbers

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Mortgage Calculator

See monthly payments for homes in either city

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Rent vs Buy

Is it cheaper to rent or buy in these markets?

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Cost of Living

Full cost of living comparison tool

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Home Appreciation

Project future home value growth

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Affordability Calculator

How much home can you afford?

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Property Tax Calculator

Estimate taxes in Dallas or Fort Worth

Dallas Calculators

→ Mortgage calculator for Dallas→ Rent vs buy in Dallas

Fort Worth Calculators

→ Mortgage calculator for Fort Worth→ Rent vs buy in Fort Worth

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Dallas vs Fort Worth: Common Questions

Is Dallas or Fort Worth cheaper to live in?

Based on cost of living indices, Fort Worth is cheaper overall. Dallas has a COL index of 105 while Fort Worth scores 99 (national average = 100).

How do home prices compare between Dallas and Fort Worth?

The median home price in Dallas is $370,000 vs $330,000 in Fort Worth — a difference of $40,000 (11%).

What salary do I need in Fort Worth to match my Dallas income?

Use the salary equivalence table above. For example, a $100K salary in Dallas is equivalent to $94,286 in Fort Worth in terms of purchasing power.

Which city has lower property taxes?

Fort Worth has a lower property tax rate (1.8% vs 1.8%). On a median-priced home, that means paying $5,940/year vs $6,660/year.

How does rent compare in Dallas vs Fort Worth?

Median monthly rent: $1,275 in Dallas vs $1,354 in Fort Worth. Annualized: $15,300 vs $16,248.

What is the median household income in each city?

Dallas: $69,400/yr. Fort Worth: $66,200/yr (Census ACS).

Which city is better for remote workers?

Lower-cost Fort Worth typically lets remote-workers keeping a coastal salary stretch further. Higher-cost cities usually win on amenities and labor-market depth.

Where does the data on this comparison come from?

Numbers are pulled from Zillow ZHVI/ZORI (home values, rent), the U.S. Census Bureau ACS (income), and BEA RPP (cost-of-living index). Each value is timestamped on the page.

How often is this comparison updated?

Source feeds refresh on their native cadence — hourly for mortgage rates, monthly for ZHVI/ZORI, annually for ACS. Page caches revalidate every 24 hours via Next.js ISR.

Does this comparison replace tax or financial advice?

No. This page is educational reference using public data and standard formulas. It is not personalized tax, legal, or investment advice. Consult a licensed professional for material decisions.

Sources & Citations

  1. Zillow Research — Zillow Home Value Index (ZHVI) and Observed Rent Index (ZORI) — zillow.com/research/data
  2. U.S. Census Bureau — American Community Survey (ACS) 5-year estimates for median household income, median age, commute time — census.gov/acs
  3. Bureau of Economic Analysis — Regional Price Parities (RPP) by state and metro — bea.gov/rpp
  4. Tax Foundation — effective property tax rates and state tax rates — taxfoundation.org
  5. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics — unemployment rates and regional CPI — bls.gov
  6. Council for Community and Economic Research (C2ER) — Cost of Living Index — coli.org
Methodology & Assumptions

City-level metrics (median home price, median rent, median household income, property tax rate, COL index, commute, unemployment, median age) are sourced from Zillow ZHVI/ZORI[1], Census ACS 5-year estimates[2], BEA Regional Price Parities[3], Tax Foundation[4], and BLS Local Area Unemployment Statistics[5].

The Cost of Living Index uses 100 = national average (C2ER methodology[6]): values above 100 indicate a city is more expensive than the national average, below 100 less expensive.

Salary equivalence uses the ratio adjustedSalary = salary × (colDestination / colOrigin). This accounts for cost-of-living differences but does not model state income tax variation, which can be significant.

Annual property tax is computed as medianHomePrice × propertyTaxRate. Actual assessed value may differ from sale price. Effective rates vary within a metro; these are metro-wide medians.

Commute-hours calculations assume 250 working days/year and a round-trip commute. "Tied" in the comparison table means values within ±1% of each other.

Last reviewed reflects the maximum retrievedAt timestamp across every sourced dataset feeding this page. When any source refreshes, the next ISR revalidation (every 24 hours) picks the new date.

Cost of living data sourced from [6] C2ER, [2] U.S. Census Bureau, and [1] Zillow Research. Tax rates from [4] Tax Foundation. Last reviewed 2026-04-19.