Cost of living comparison
compared to
United States vs. Austin Cost of Living Summary
United States is 2.9% more expensive than Austin.
- Restaurants
-
pay 2.5% less in United States
- Groceries
-
pay 7.3% more in United States
- Transportation
-
pay 24.4% more in United States
- Housing
-
pay 2.5% less in United States
- Childcare
-
pay 4.2% more in United States
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 6.3% less in United States
- Clothing
-
pay 4.1% less in United States
The cost of transportation, groceries, and childcare in United States are more expensive than in Austin. Expenses including entertainment and sports, clothing, restaurants, and housing are lower in United States.
United States vs. Austin Cost Breakdown
If you lived in United States instead of Austin, you would:
pay 2.5% less for restaurants
|
Austin
|
United States
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$20.00
|
$19.45
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$11.00
|
$11.12
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.67
|
$2.56
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.09
|
$2.00
|
|
Austin vs. United States - Cost of restaurants
pay 7.3% more for groceries
|
Austin
|
United States
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$3.40
|
$3.56
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$6.17
|
$6.50
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$3.93
|
$3.97
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$4.85
|
$4.27
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$5.15
|
$5.41
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$2.20
|
$2.37
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.70
|
$0.78
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.96
|
$2.04
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$1.75
|
$2.21
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.18
|
$1.34
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.24
|
$1.38
|
|
Austin vs. United States - Cost of groceries
pay 24.4% more for transportation
|
Austin
|
United States
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$2.79
|
$3.41
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$41.38
|
$65.85
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$27,900.00
|
$32,336.38
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$17.67
|
$17.61
|
|
Austin vs. United States - Cost of transportation
pay 2.5% less for housing
|
Austin
|
United States
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$68.20
|
$68.97
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$2,134.75
|
$1,664.59
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,434.41
|
$1,416.15
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$133.86
|
$150.19
|
|
Austin vs. United States - Cost of housing
pay 4.2% more for childcare
|
Austin
|
United States
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$1,343.18
|
$1,387.27
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$22,093.75
|
$23,196.46
|
|
Austin vs. United States - Cost of childcare
pay 6.3% less for entertainment and sports
|
Austin
|
United States
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$6.00
|
$5.84
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$5.56
|
$5.15
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$9.00
|
$9.90
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$66.33
|
$51.45
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$15.00
|
$13.64
|
|
Austin vs. United States - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 4.1% less for clothing
|
Austin
|
United States
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$52.74
|
$51.08
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$43.79
|
$41.81
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$87.55
|
$87.56
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$117.47
|
$112.04
|
|
Austin vs. United States - Cost of clothing
The statistics used to build this comparison are calculated using data from users just like you.
We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world.
Learn more about our data sources. Page last updated: December 2025
Change currency:
Help us improve these prices
MyLifeElsewhere is a collaborative project. Please enter price information for your location to help assist us in making these comparisons more accurate.
Learn more
ASK THE ELSEWHERE COMMUNITY
Join the Elsewhere community and ask a question about United States or Austin. It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.