Software Developer · Dallas–Fort Worth, TX

24.0 hours of work

cover a month's rent on a one-bedroom in Dallas–Fort Worth for a software developer earning the median $64.08 an hour.

Comfortable Rank 5 of 21 for Software Developers (by rent share of take-home) · Metro median pay is 2% below this job's U.S. median

Median pay
$133,290
per year · $64.08/hr · 67,030 Software Developers
1-bedroom rent
$1,536
per month · HUD Fair Market Rent FY2027 (effective Oct 1, 2026)
Take-home
$8,531
per month after federal tax + FICA
Left after rent
$6,995
per month · yours · 18% of take-home

Hours of work = monthly rent ÷ BLS median hourly wage ($1,536 ÷ $64.08). After federal taxes the same rent takes 31.2 h of take-home pay.

EARNINGS STATEMENT FY2027 (effective Oct 1, 2026)
Software Developer
Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX
Rate (median, hourly)$64.08
Hours in a month173.3
Gross pay$11,108
Federal income tax−$1,727
Social Security + Medicare−$850
Take-home$8,531
Rent · 1BR · HUD FMR−$1,536

Rent costs

24.0 hours

of work to cover one month

STUB-01

Wages May 2025 estimates · Rent FY2027 (effective Oct 1, 2026)

01 · Paycheck prints

A month at the median wage, line by line.

Rate $64.08 × 173.3 hours (2,080 ÷ 12) prints gross pay of $11,108.

EARNINGS STATEMENT FY2027 (effective Oct 1, 2026)
Software Developer
Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX
Rate (median, hourly)$64.08
Hours in a month173.3
Gross pay$11,108
Federal income tax−$1,727
Social Security + Medicare−$850
Take-home$8,531
Rent · 1BR · HUD FMR−$1,536

Rent costs

24.0 hours

of work to cover one month

STUB-01

Wages May 2025 estimates · Rent FY2027 (effective Oct 1, 2026)

02 · Taxes peel off

Federal income tax and FICA come off the stub.

2026 single filer, standard deduction. State income tax is not levied in this state.

Federal income tax 2026, single−$1,727
Social Security + Medicare−$850

Taxes · $2,577 · peeled

03 · Rent tears away

A strip as tall as the rent.

24.0 h

of work at $64.08/hr pays $1,536, one month of a one-bedroom in Dallas–Fort Worth. The strip is drawn to scale: $1,536 of a $11,108 gross month (14% of stub).

Background tint · rent burden 18.0% of take-home

Rent · 1BR FMR−$1,536

Hours of work

24.0

HUD Fair Market Rent FY2027 (effective Oct 1, 2026) · Dallas–Fort Worth metro

04 · What's left is yours

After tax and the 1-bedroom, this remains.

Comfortable

What's left · yours

$6,995

Take-home before rent$8,531
2BR instead (−$1,807)$6,724
vs HUD 30%-of-gross rule2.17×

05 · Floor plan

The stub becomes a one-bedroom.

Rent hatches rooms in ledger red, to scale against take-home. Toggle a 2-bedroom — both figures are precomputed HUD FMRs.

1-bedroom floor plan with rent hatched LIVING BED BATH KITCHEN

Hatched share is 18% of take-home (1BR).

06 · Street grid

How Dallas–Fort Worth compares for Software Developers

Hours of work to cover a one-bedroom's rent, all metros, fewest hours first.

Comfortable (rent ≤ 30% of take-home)Stretched (30–40%)Strained (> 40%)

Sorted by hours of work (1-bedroom HUD FMR ÷ median hourly wage), fewest first. Rank on the page still uses rent share of take-home.

# Metro Hours Rent Wage / hr 0 – 52 h (HUD 30% of gross)
01 Detroit 18.6 h $1,167 $62.87
02 Houston 20.3 h $1,261 $62.23
03 Minneapolis–St. Paul 22.7 h $1,427 $62.94
04 Phoenix 23.6 h $1,493 $63.34
05 Dallas–Fort Worth 24.0 h $1,536 $64.08
06 Baltimore 24.3 h $1,625 $66.78
07 Philadelphia 24.4 h $1,558 $63.96
08 Atlanta 25.3 h $1,619 $63.92
09 San Francisco 25.5 h $2,290 $89.73
10 Tampa 26.3 h $1,648 $62.71
11 Riverside–San Bernardino 26.6 h $1,705 $64.07
12 Seattle 27.1 h $2,180 $80.42
13 Chicago 27.6 h $1,780 $64.60
14 Denver 27.7 h $1,831 $66.16
15 Orlando 27.7 h $1,726 $62.32
16 Washington, DC 29.6 h $2,204 $74.49
17 San Diego 29.7 h $2,335 $78.49
18 Los Angeles 31.0 h $2,402 $77.37
19 Boston 31.5 h $2,518 $79.85
20 Miami 33.3 h $2,121 $63.77
21 New York 34.0 h $2,729 $80.21

The ledger

One month at the median wage, line by line, in dollars and in hours of work.

LinePer monthHours of workBasis
Gross pay$11,108173.3$133,290 ÷ 12
Federal income tax−$1,72727.0$20,724/yr ÷ 12
Social Security + Medicare−$85013.3$10,197/yr ÷ 12
Take-home$8,531133.1TX has no wage tax
Rent · 1BR FMR−$1,53624.0HUD FY2027 (effective Oct 1, 2026)
Yours$6,995109.2take-home − rent

Hours = dollars ÷ $64.08; 173.3 = 2,080 hrs ÷ 12. May not sum exactly due to rounding.

Hours of work for rent, by pay level

Same $1,536 one-bedroom, different software developer paychecks.

10th · $41.31 37.2 h
25th · $50.80 30.2 h
Median · $64.08 24.0 h
75th · $78.89 19.5 h
90th · $86.25 17.8 h

Bar scale includes the HUD 30%-of-gross line at 52.0 h (52 h rounded). Same 1-bedroom, different paychecks (BLS wage percentiles ÷ 2,080 hrs).

Take-home vs rent

Monthly take-home pay: $8,531 1-bedroom Left $6,995 Rent $1,536 2-bedroom Left $6,724 Rent $1,807

Where Software Developers keep more after rent

This ranking uses rent share of take-home (rank 5 of 21), not hours.

≤30% of take-home30–40%>40%30% line

Sources & method

  1. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May 2025 — metropolitan areas — vintage: May 2025 estimates. File: oesm25ma.zip, retrieved 2026-10-06.
  2. U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD USER), Fair Market Rents, FY2027 — vintage: FY2027 (effective Oct 1, 2026). File: FY27_FMRs.xlsx, retrieved 2026-10-05.
  3. Internal Revenue Service, Rev. Proc. 2025-32 (tax year 2026 brackets, $16,100 standard deduction) and SSA's $184,500 wage base, used for the take-home estimate.
  4. HUD FMR area: Dallas, TX HUD Metro FMR Area (METRO19100M19100).
  5. Occupation: SOC 15-1252 Software Developers.

Take-home = annual wage − 2026 federal income tax (single filer, standard deduction) − Social Security and Medicare. State and local income taxes are not deducted. Wages are May 2025 estimates; rents are HUD Fair Market Rents FY2027 (effective Oct 1, 2026). Full details on the methodology page. Page data last rebuilt 2026-10-06.

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