Cost of living comparison
compared to
Austin vs. Minnesota Cost of Living Summary
Austin is 4.4% more expensive than Minnesota.
- Restaurants
-
pay 4.7% more in Austin
- Groceries
-
pay 3.8% less in Austin
- Transportation
-
pay 13.4% less in Austin
- Housing
-
pay 26.9% more in Austin
- Childcare
-
pay 2.2% more in Austin
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 6.2% more in Austin
- Clothing
-
pay 8.1% more in Austin
The cost of housing, clothing, entertainment and sports, restaurants, and childcare in Austin are more expensive than in Minnesota. Expenses including transportation and groceries are lower in Austin.
Austin vs. Minnesota Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Austin instead of Minnesota, you would:
pay 4.7% more for restaurants
|
Minnesota
|
Austin
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$18.17
|
$20.00
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$11.25
|
$11.00
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.48
|
$2.67
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.02
|
$2.09
|
|
Minnesota vs. Austin - Cost of restaurants
pay 3.8% less for groceries
|
Minnesota
|
Austin
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$3.28
|
$3.40
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$5.34
|
$6.17
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$3.66
|
$3.93
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$3.64
|
$4.85
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$5.61
|
$5.15
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$2.28
|
$2.20
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.69
|
$0.70
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$2.48
|
$1.96
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$2.23
|
$1.75
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.55
|
$1.18
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.65
|
$1.24
|
|
Minnesota vs. Austin - Cost of groceries
pay 13.4% less for transportation
|
Minnesota
|
Austin
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$3.15
|
$2.79
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$72.00
|
$41.38
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$32,149.01
|
$27,900.00
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$15.56
|
$17.67
|
|
Minnesota vs. Austin - Cost of transportation
pay 26.9% more for housing
|
Minnesota
|
Austin
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$67.48
|
$68.20
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,182.19
|
$2,134.75
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,123.71
|
$1,434.41
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$135.87
|
$133.86
|
|
Minnesota vs. Austin - Cost of housing
pay 2.2% more for childcare
|
Minnesota
|
Austin
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$1,260.39
|
$1,343.18
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$22,591.00
|
$22,093.75
|
|
Minnesota vs. Austin - Cost of childcare
pay 6.2% more for entertainment and sports
|
Minnesota
|
Austin
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$5.52
|
$6.00
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$5.01
|
$5.56
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$10.69
|
$9.00
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$59.95
|
$66.33
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$12.88
|
$15.00
|
|
Minnesota vs. Austin - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 8.1% more for clothing
|
Minnesota
|
Austin
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$53.07
|
$52.74
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$45.44
|
$43.79
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$77.05
|
$87.55
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$95.44
|
$117.47
|
|
Minnesota vs. Austin - 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
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