Relocation guide
Dallas vs Los Angeles
In short
Across Dallas-Fort Worth, the Census median gross rent for a two-bedroom, utilities included, is $1,660, against $2,210 in the Los Angeles metro (ACS 2020–2024). Texas has no state income tax; California’s 2025 rates run from 1% to 12.3%. Dallas is two hours ahead of Los Angeles. Figures checked October 2026.
Updated October 2026 · Source: U.S. Census Bureau (ACS 2020–2024), U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis (2024 price parities), NOAA (1991–2020 normals), the Texas Comptroller and California tax agencies
Rent, prices, taxes, weather and the commute, compared between Southern California and North Texas, and what to do from Los Angeles before you lease.
By Joon Ma, designated broker, TREC #709941
Rent by bedroom: Dallas-Fort Worth and Los Angeles
Both columns use the Census Bureau’s metro areas. Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim is made up of Los Angeles County and Orange County; Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington takes in Dallas, Fort Worth and their suburbs. The figures come from one survey and the same five years, so they compare like with like.
| Bedrooms | Dallas-Fort Worth | Los Angeles metro | DFW is lower by |
|---|---|---|---|
| Studio | $1,388 | $1,600 | $212 |
| 1 bedroom | $1,393 | $1,784 | $391 |
| 2 bedrooms | $1,660 | $2,210 | $550 |
| 3 bedrooms | $1,934 | $2,636 | $702 |
| All rentals | $1,614 | $2,063 | $449 |
The gap grows with each bedroom. At the medians, a studio is $212 a month lower in DFW, a two-bedroom $550 lower and a three-bedroom $702 lower. On a 12-month lease for a two-bedroom, that adds up to $6,600 a year.
A median is a midpoint, not a quote. The survey covers people who have rented the same place for years as well as new tenants, and houses as well as apartments. What a unit asks this month can differ in both metros, which is why we check current rents with each community before it goes on your list.
Within DFW the medians shift by city. The one-bedroom median gross rent is $1,252 in Fort Worth and $1,675 in Frisco. See the pages for Fort Worth and Frisco, and the suburbs guide for the other cities.
What the price indexes say
The U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis measures how expensive each metro area is against the national average, which it sets at 100. Its Regional Price Parities for 2024, released February 19, 2026, place the two metros like this:
- All goods and services
- Dallas-Fort Worth 103.1 · Los Angeles metro 113.6
- Housing rents
- Dallas-Fort Worth 117.9 · Los Angeles metro 170.4
Housing is where the two metros part ways. Rents in the Los Angeles metro measured 70% above the U.S. average; in DFW, 18% above. For all goods and services together the difference is smaller: 14% above average there, 3% here.
Ask which utilities each community includes in the rent. Our utilities guide covers electricity and internet in Dallas.
California taxes and Texas taxes
Texas does not tax personal income. Article 8, Section 24-a of the Texas Constitution, added in November 2019, bars a state tax on individuals’ net incomes. California taxes income at graduated rates.
- Texas
- No state income tax. Sales tax: 6.25% state rate; local rates add up to 2%, to a combined maximum of 8.25%.
- California
- Income tax from 1% to 12.3% for tax year 2025, plus a 1% Behavioral Health Services Tax on taxable income over $1,000,000. Sales tax: 7.25% statewide rate; in most areas, local district taxes add 0.10% to 2.00%.
If you move during the year, California has a return for that case. The Franchise Tax Board’s instructions say that people who moved into or out of California during the year file Form 540NR. How much of your income California still taxes after you leave depends on where that income comes from.
None of this is tax advice. For your own return, ask a tax professional.
Two driving metros, measured
- Average one-way commute
- Dallas-Fort Worth 27.9 minutes · Los Angeles metro 29.5 minutes
- Share of workers on public transportation
- Dallas-Fort Worth 0.7% · Los Angeles metro 3.2%
Both metros run mostly on cars, and their average commutes are within two minutes of each other. Transit carries a smaller share here: 0.7% of DFW workers use it, against 3.2% in the Los Angeles metro.
Los Angeles has Metro Rail inside the county and Metrolink commuter trains reaching across Southern California. In DFW, DART runs four light rail lines plus the Silver Line, which opened on October 25, 2025. On the Fort Worth side, TEXRail runs from downtown Fort Worth to DFW Airport’s Terminal B, and the Trinity Railway Express connects the two downtowns.
Expect toll roads. The North Texas Tollway Authority runs the Dallas North Tollway, the President George Bush Turnpike, the Sam Rayburn Tollway, the Chisholm Trail Parkway and the 360 Tollway, among others. Its TollTag pays lower rates at every toll point.
Bringing your car from California? The Texas Department of Motor Vehicles gives new residents 30 days after moving here to register a vehicle (checked October 2, 2026), and in Collin, Dallas, Denton and Tarrant counties, among others, the car has to pass an emissions inspection first. The rest of the list, from your license to your mail, is in your first 30 days in DFW.
Job centers west and north
Dallas-Fort Worth has two downtowns, with suburbs between and around them, so knowing where you will work narrows the map quickly. Drive times are without traffic (rush hour adds time) and train times come from Google Maps at a weekday hour; both are filled in before the page goes live.
Downtown Fort Worth
TEXRail and the Trinity Railway Express both end at T&P Station in downtown Fort Worth: TEXRail from DFW Airport and Grapevine, the TRE from Dallas Union Station. Downtown Fort Worth has its own page. Grapevine’s Main Street station to T&P Station on TEXRail: Maps: minutes by train, weekday 8 a.m..
Alliance, north of Fort Worth
Perot Field Fort Worth Alliance Airport, north of downtown Fort Worth, opened in 1989 and works mainly as a cargo airport. No passenger rail reaches it, so look at the north side of Fort Worth and drive. Downtown Fort Worth to the airport by car: 16 min.
DFW Airport and its four cities
The airport’s land lies in Grapevine, Irving, Euless and Coppell. Three rail lines reach the terminals: the Orange Line at Terminal A, and the Silver Line and TEXRail at Terminal B. If you will work at or near the airport, see Near DFW Airport. Euless to Terminal B by car: 7 min.
Arlington, between the two downtowns
Instead of fixed bus routes, Arlington runs Arlington On-Demand: shared rides booked in an app, covering the whole city and the CentrePort station on the Trinity Railway Express, where a trip from anywhere in Arlington costs $3 (City of Arlington, checked October 2, 2026). Grand Prairie is next door to the east. Arlington to downtown Dallas by car: Maps: minutes, weekday 8 a.m..
Legacy West and Frisco, along the tollways
Legacy West, in Plano, sits where the Sam Rayburn Tollway meets the Dallas North Tollway, and Frisco runs north along the Dallas North Tollway. No rail reaches either, so this part of the metro is for driving. McKinney lies to the northeast. Frisco to Legacy West by car: Maps: minutes, weekday 8 a.m..
Heat and rain, by the numbers
NOAA’s 1991–2020 climate normals show the difference plainly. Los Angeles International Airport averages 57.9°F in January and 69.6°F in July, with 12.23 inches of precipitation a year. DFW Airport averages 46.3°F in January and 85.7°F in July, with 37.01 inches (NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, checked October 2, 2026).
That is about three times the yearly rain and a July about 16°F warmer. On a tour, ask how units are cooled, whether parking is covered, and how the property drains after a storm.
Touring two time zones away
Dallas runs on Central Time, two hours ahead of Los Angeles. A leasing office that opens at 9 a.m. here is open at 7 a.m. for you, and one that closes at 6 p.m. closes at 4 p.m. your time. Early mornings are the easy window for a video tour.
We do the first round from here. We call the communities that fit your budget and dates, confirm what is open and send you the photos and floor plans each one lets us share. When you see a unit by video, ask the leasing agent to show the view from the windows and the walk from the parking spot, two things photos leave out.
If you are driving to Dallas with your car, ask each community about parking before you apply: a garage, a covered spot or an open lot, and whether it costs extra. If you plan to visit first, group the finalists by area; Frisco and Fort Worth are far apart.
Applying before the drive
Most communities hold a unit for about 45 to 60 days, which matches the notice their current residents give. Start your search in that window and you can apply before you leave California.
Each community decides who qualifies. Many look for household income around three times the rent, and they usually count the full rent, not the price after a special. Ask us what a community wants before you pay an application fee, and if you are starting a job in DFW, whether an offer letter counts as proof of income.
Before you tour, in person or on video, put our name on it: register the community on the register page or write AptViva on the guest card. Most communities pay a locator only when the locator is named at the first visit, and that payment is why you pay nothing.
From California to your new door
Getting your things from Los Angeles to Dallas is yours to arrange. The 3 hours of moving we include at participating communities cover a local move inside Dallas-Fort Worth, so they fit the last step: from a short-term rental or a friend’s place in DFW to your apartment. Or choose the cash option instead. Restrictions apply. See terms
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