Moving from California to Washington
At $100,000 a single filer saves $5,055 a year by moving from California to Washington — $421 a month. California charges $5,055 at that income and Washington charges $0, an effective 5.05% against 0.00%.
The gap is not constant. At $50,000 it is $1,040; at $500,000 it is $43,968. Washington levies no individual income tax, so the whole of your California bill disappears and the saving grows with every dollar you earn.
California: tax year 2025 figures. The California amounts shown here are the 2025 brackets, standard deduction and exemptions, published for 2026 because California has not yet published its 2026 inflation-indexed brackets, standard deduction or exemption credits. The 2026 Form 540-ES instructions confirm the structure for 2026 — nine brackets from 1% to 12.3% plus the 1% Behavioral Health Services Tax above $1,000,000 — and direct taxpayers to the 2025 standard deduction and exemption credit amounts in the meantime. Source: California Franchise Tax Board, 2025 California Tax Rate Schedules (Form 540 booklet), verified .
The move priced at every income
State income tax in both jurisdictions for tax year 2026, at the standard tiers. Change the filing status to see how the answer moves.
| Income | California tax2025 brackets | Washington tax | Change per year | Change per month | Effective rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| $50,000 | $1,040 | $0 | −$1,040 | −$87 | 2.08% → 0.00% |
| $75,000 | $2,775 | $0 | −$2,775 | −$231 | 3.70% → 0.00% |
| $100,000 | $5,055 | $0 | −$5,055 | −$421 | 5.05% → 0.00% |
| $150,000 | $9,705 | $0 | −$9,705 | −$809 | 6.47% → 0.00% |
| $250,000 | $19,005 | $0 | −$19,005 | −$1,584 | 7.60% → 0.00% |
| $500,000 | $43,968 | $0 | −$43,968 | −$3,664 | 8.79% → 0.00% |
California: tax year 2025 figures. The California amounts shown here are the 2025 brackets, standard deduction and exemptions, published for 2026 because California has not yet published its 2026 inflation-indexed brackets, standard deduction or exemption credits. The 2026 Form 540-ES instructions confirm the structure for 2026 — nine brackets from 1% to 12.3% plus the 1% Behavioral Health Services Tax above $1,000,000 — and direct taxpayers to the 2025 standard deduction and exemption credit amounts in the meantime. Source: California Franchise Tax Board, 2025 California Tax Rate Schedules (Form 540 booklet), verified .
Want a figure for your own income? Open this pair in the moving calculator, which also takes Maryland county and New York City local taxes.
Both states at $100,000
California (leaving)2025 brackets
$100,000 · Single · TY2026California: tax year 2025 figures. The California amounts shown here are the 2025 brackets, standard deduction and exemptions, published for 2026 because California has not yet published its 2026 inflation-indexed brackets, standard deduction or exemption credits. The 2026 Form 540-ES instructions confirm the structure for 2026 — nine brackets from 1% to 12.3% plus the 1% Behavioral Health Services Tax above $1,000,000 — and direct taxpayers to the 2025 standard deduction and exemption credit amounts in the meantime. Source: California Franchise Tax Board, 2025 California Tax Rate Schedules (Form 540 booklet), verified .
Washington (arriving)
$100,000 · Single · TY2026How many people make this move
43,938 people moved from California to Washington in 2024, give or take 5,464 — the American Community Survey is a sample, and its margin of error on a flow this size is wide. That makes it the tenth busiest of the 57 routes this site covers.
The traffic runs both ways: 26,956 people moved the other way, from Washington to California, in the same year. That is a net 16,982 toward Washington. The return trip has its own page: moving from Washington to California.
Movers: U.S. Census Bureau, Table 1. State-to-State Migration Flows: 2024 (American Community Survey 1-year estimates) (retrieved 2026-09-23). Universe: population 1 year and over in the united states. Tax figures are computed from each state's own rate schedule and are unrelated to this dataset.
What else changes between California and Washington
Capital gains. A long-term gain meets a top rate of 13.30% in California and 9.90% in Washington.
California, today: California is the plainest statement of the rule in the country and the most expensive. The 2025 Form 540 instructions for line 7a say: "California taxes long and short term capital gains as regular income. No special rate for long term capital gains exists." The top bracket is 12.3%, and a 1% Behavioral Health Services Tax on taxable income over $1,000,000 takes the top to 13.3% — the highest rate on a long-term gain anywhere in the United States.
Washington, after the move: Washington has no income tax, but it does levy a separate excise tax on long-term capital gains. For 2025 the rate is 7% on the first $1,000,000 of taxable Washington capital gains and 9.9% (7% plus an additional 2.9%) on the amount above $1,000,000. The tax bites only above a standard deduction of $278,000 for 2025, which is per individual, married couple or domestic partnership and is adjusted for inflation annually. Compare every state.
Retirement income. Washington: Washington levies no individual income tax, so Social Security benefits are not taxed at the state level. Compare every state.
Direction of travel. California's top rate has not moved since 2021. Washington's top rate has not moved since 2021. California history · Washington history.
What this does not answer
State income tax only. Property tax, sales tax and housing costs usually matter more to a moving decision than the figures on this page, and none of them is here.
A full year in each state. In the year you move you will normally file part-year returns in both, splitting the income between them, so neither column is what you will actually pay that year.
Rates are tax year 2026. Sources: California Franchise Tax Board and Washington State Department of Revenue. How we verify this data · Disclaimer