Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Austin, TX and Baia Mare

For one person, living is cheaper in Baia Mare: $882 a month against $2,663 in Austin, TX, rent and utilities included – about $21,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

130

Cost of Living Index in Austin, TX
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Austin, TX Living Index
43

Cost of Living Index in Baia Mare
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Baia Mare Living Index

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Austin, TX

🇺🇸 United States

$2,663

/mo nomad

Baia Mare

🇷🇴 Romania

$882

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Austin, TX and in Baia Mare

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Austin, TX and in Baia Mare actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,663 in Austin, TX versus $882 in Baia Mare.

Austin, TX $2,663
Baia Mare $882

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,133 in Austin, TX versus $1,385 in Baia Mare.

Austin, TX $4,133
Baia Mare $1,385

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,603 in Austin, TX versus $1,888 in Baia Mare.

Austin, TX $5,603
Baia Mare $1,888

Living in Austin, TX is roughly 202% more expensive than in Baia Mare, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Austin, TX is 97% above, Baia Mare is 35% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$20.77 $20.77

$12.30 RON 58.2

68.86%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$84.6 $84.6

$31.87 RON 151

165.42%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.32 $12.32

$8.21 RON 38.85

50.06%

Cappuccino

$5.63 $5.63

$2.08 RON 9.82

170.67%

Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.72 $3.72

$1.74 RON 8.25

113.79%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.50 $2.50

$1.33 RON 6.30

87.97%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.05 $8.05

$1.60 RON 7.58

403.13%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$9.01 $9.01

$2.14 RON 10.11

321.03%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.12 $1.12

$1.45 RON 6.84

-22.76%

White Bread (500g)

$3.75 $3.75

$1.45 RON 6.84

158.62%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.26 $3.26

$1.48 RON 7.02

120.27%

Eggs

$4.17 $4.17

$2.93 RON 13.88

42.32%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.90 $12.90

$6.13 RON 29.01

110.44%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$14.16 $14.16

$6.48 RON 30.66

118.52%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.22 $16.22

$10.53 RON 49.80

54.04%

Apples (1kg)

$4.33 $4.33

$1.13 RON 5.36

283.19%

Banana (1kg)

$1.46 $1.46

$1.53 RON 7.24

-4.58%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.51 $4.51

$1.32 RON 6.26

241.67%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.34 $4.34

$2.62 RON 12.41

65.65%

Potato (1kg)

$2.58 $2.58

$0.91 RON 4.33

183.52%

Onion (1kg)

$2.35 $2.35

$1.07 RON 5.08

119.63%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.78 $1.78

$1.10 RON 5.23

61.82%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.22 $2.22

$0.81 RON 3.85

174.07%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$9.88 $9.88

$6.41 RON 30.35

54.13%

Wine (Bottle)

$15.08 $15.08

$4.62 RON 21.88

226.41%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.92 $2.92

$1.09 RON 5.17

167.89%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.46 $3.46

$1.68 RON 7.93

105.95%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.49 $1.49

$0.66 RON 3.11

125.76%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$41.72 $41.72

$14.36 RON 67.9

190.53%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.73 $2.73

$0.76 RON 3.59

259.21%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.66 $1.66

$0.75 RON 3.53

121.33%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$35.30 $35.30

$5.94 RON 28.11

494.28%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.95 $0.95

$1.72 RON 8.12

-44.77%

Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)

$36.0K $36.0K

$28.2K RON 133.3K

27.95%

Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)

$27.1K $27.1K

$25.4K RON 120.1K

6.70%

Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)

$229 $229

$103 RON 489

121.40%

SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)

$59.4 $59.4

$14.96 RON 70.8

296.99%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$69.9 $69.9

$11.75 RON 55.6

494.98%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.2 $57.2

$38.39 RON 182

49.10%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.33 $16.33

$16.14 RON 76.4

1.18%

Cinema Ticket

$14.28 $14.28

$10.07 RON 47.66

41.81%

Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)

$1,506 $1,506

$527 RON 2,493

185.79%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$21.5K $21.5K

$5,253 RON 24.9K

308.43%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$52.8 $52.8

$36.87 RON 174

43.23%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$43.82 $43.82

$41.97 RON 199

4.41%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$84.8 $84.8

$62.1 RON 294

36.51%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$103 $103

$75.0 RON 355

37.40%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,907 $1,907

$278 RON 1,313

587.18%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,274 $1,274

$203 RON 960

527.81%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,664 $3,664

$489 RON 2,314

649.28%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,538 $2,538

$368 RON 1,743

588.85%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,614 $7,614

$2,044 RON 9,671

272.49%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,157 $3,157

$1,414 RON 6,691

123.24%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$5,121 $5,121

$859 RON 4,063

496.31%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.79

7.48

-9.22%

CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Austin, TX: October 12, 2026

Last update for Baia Mare: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Accommodation & Living

Austin, TX

$1.3K 47.8%

Baia Mare

$203 23% 84.1% $1.1K

Groceries & Markets

Austin, TX

$405 15.2%

Baia Mare

$199 22.6% 50.7% $205

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Austin, TX

$358 13.5%

Baia Mare

$130 14.8% 63.7% $228

Eating Out

Austin, TX

$354 13.3%

Baia Mare

$173 19.6% 51.2% $181

Clothing & Footwear

Austin, TX

$128 4.8%

Baia Mare

$97 11% 24.1% $31

Sport & Entertainment

Austin, TX

$86 3.2%

Baia Mare

$59 6.6% 31.8% $27

Getting Around

Austin, TX

$59 2.2%

Baia Mare

$21 2.4% 63.4% $37

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,907 in Austin, TX and $278 in Baia Mare. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Austin, TX pays 496% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $85.0 in Austin, TX vs $32.00 in Baia Mare for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $405 vs $199 per month, with Baia Mare cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Austin, TX

🇷🇴 Baia Mare

🕒 Local time

09:23 9:23 AM

17:23 5:23 PM

8 h ahead of Austin, TX

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

974,447

123,738

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Romanian Leu RON lei

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.889 EUR

1 RON = 0.211 USD

1 RON = 0.188 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

RON, EUR to USD – United States Dollar Converter

🇷🇴 Romanian Leu (lei)

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

United States Dollar exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.889 EUR).

Romanian Leu exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 4.73 RON (1 RON = 0.211 USD). 1 EUR = 5.32 RON (1 RON = 0.188 EUR).

RON to USD in detail →

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Between locations

Austin, TX Baia Mare 9,560 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Austin, TX
Baia Mare

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Austin, TX vs Baia Mare: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Baia Mare wins on cost – living expenses run 202% lower than in Austin, TX. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Baia Mare the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay runs 496% higher in Austin, TX, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,907 in Austin, TX versus $278 in Baia Mare. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $2,663 per month in Austin, TX versus $882 in Baia Mare – a 202% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Baia Mare runs roughly 191% less than in Austin, TX. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $882 in Baia Mare versus $2,663 in Austin, TX, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Baia Mare but tight or insufficient in Austin, TX. The gap between the two cities makes Baia Mare the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Safety-wise, Austin, TX and Baia Mare are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Baia Mare gentler on the wallet – expenses run 202% less than in Austin, TX. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.