Moving from New York to California
24,927 people moved from New York to California in 2024, the 38th busiest of the 57 interstate moves covered here; 31,367 moved the other way.
The year you move. You normally file part-year resident returns in both states: New York taxes the income earned while you lived there and California the income earned after you arrive, so neither full-year figure below is what you pay that year.
Local income tax at each end. New York: New York City levies a resident personal income tax of 3.078% to 3.876% on city taxable income, collected on the state return. Yonkers levies a resident income tax surcharge equal to 16.75% of the taxpayer's New York State tax, and a 0.5% earnings tax on non-residents who work there. No other New York locality taxes individual income. (New York City income tax) California: no local income tax.
At $100,000 a single filer pays $51 a year for moving from New York to California — $4 a month. New York charges $4,860 at that income and California charges $4,911, an effective 4.86% against 4.91%. California vs New York, side by side.
The gap is not constant. At $50,000 it is $1,130; at $500,000 it is $9,841. Both states run a graduated schedule, so the gap scales roughly with income.
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 | New York tax | California tax | Change per year | Change per month | Effective rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| $50,000 | $2,103 | $973 | −$1,130 | −$94 | 4.21% → 1.95% |
| $75,000 | $3,453 | $2,665 | −$788 | −$66 | 4.60% → 3.55% |
| $100,000 | $4,860 | $4,911 | +$51 | +$4 | 4.86% → 4.91% |
| $150,000 | $8,291 | $9,561 | +$1,270 | +$106 | 5.53% → 6.37% |
| $250,000 | $15,946 | $18,861 | +$2,915 | +$243 | 6.38% → 7.54% |
| $500,000 | $33,701 | $43,543 | +$9,841 | +$820 | 6.74% → 8.71% |
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
New York (leaving)
$100,000 · Single · TY2026California (arriving)
$100,000 · Single · TY2026How many people make this move
24,927 people moved from New York to California in 2024, give or take 3,680 — the American Community Survey is a sample, and its margin of error on a flow this size is wide. That makes it the 38th busiest of the 57 interstate moves with a page of their own.
The traffic runs both ways: 31,367 people moved the other way, from California to New York, in the same year. That is a net 6,440 toward New York. The return trip has its own page: moving from California to New York.
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 New York and California
Local income tax. New York has localities that levy their own income tax; California does not, so the figures above understate what you pay today. See what they cost.
Capital gains. A long-term gain meets a top rate of 10.90% in New York and 13.30% in California.
New York, today: New York taxes a capital gain at the ordinary rates, up to 10.9%. There is no preferential rate and no general exclusion.
California, after the move: California is the plainest statement of the rule in the country and the most expensive. The Franchise Tax Board states: "California does not have a lower rate for capital gains. All capital gains are taxed as ordinary income." For 2026 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. Compare every state.
Retirement income. California: California excludes U.S. Social Security benefits and equivalent Tier 1 railroad retirement benefits from taxable income. Compare every state.
Direction of travel. New York's top rate has not moved since 2021. California's top rate has not moved since 2021. New York history · California 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.
Rates are tax year 2026. Sources: New York State Department of Taxation and Finance and California Franchise Tax Board. How we verify this data · Disclaimer