Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Austin, TX and Ibaraki

For one person, living is cheaper in Ibaraki: $1,130 a month against $2,698 in Austin, TX, rent and utilities included – about $18,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

129

Cost of Living Index in Austin, TX
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Austin, TX Living Index
55

Cost of Living Index in Ibaraki
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Ibaraki Living Index

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Austin, TX

🇺🇸 United States

$2,698

/mo nomad

Ibaraki

🇯🇵 Japan

$1,130

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Austin, TX and in Ibaraki

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 Ibaraki actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,698 in Austin, TX versus $1,130 in Ibaraki.

Austin, TX $2,698
Ibaraki $1,130

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,160 in Austin, TX versus $1,756 in Ibaraki.

Austin, TX $4,160
Ibaraki $1,756

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,622 in Austin, TX versus $2,383 in Ibaraki.

Austin, TX $5,622
Ibaraki $2,383

Living in Austin, TX is roughly 139% more expensive than in Ibaraki, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Austin, TX is 99% above, Ibaraki is 17% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$20.63 $20.63

$6.43 ¥1,016

220.84%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$84.6 $84.6

$30.94 ¥4,888

173.34%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.07 $12.07

$4.95 ¥781

143.84%

Cappuccino

$5.48 $5.48

$3.04 ¥480

80.26%

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

$3.80 $3.80

$1.15 ¥182

230.43%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.47 $2.47

$0.75 ¥119

229.33%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.05 $8.05

$2.66 ¥421

202.63%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.88 $8.88

$3.16 ¥499

181.01%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.11 $1.11

$2.70 ¥427

-58.89%

White Bread (500g)

$3.72 $3.72

$1.54 ¥244

141.56%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.37 $3.37

$4.04 ¥638

-16.58%

Eggs

$4.32 $4.32

$2.12 ¥334

103.77%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.13 $13.13

$10.53 ¥1,663

24.69%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$14.15 $14.15

$6.66 ¥1,053

112.46%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.33 $16.33

$16.42 ¥2,594

-0.55%

Apples (1kg)

$4.55 $4.55

$3.79 ¥599

20.05%

Banana (1kg)

$1.46 $1.46

$2.26 ¥357

-35.40%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.71 $4.71

$2.81 ¥443

67.62%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.15 $4.15

$4.08 ¥645

1.72%

Potato (1kg)

$2.58 $2.58

$2.43 ¥384

6.17%

Onion (1kg)

$2.35 $2.35

$2.56 ¥404

-8.20%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.77 $1.77

$1.24 ¥196

42.74%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.14 $2.14

$0.85 ¥134

151.76%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$10.10 $10.10

$3.33 ¥526

203.30%

Wine (Bottle)

$15.19 $15.19

$6.66 ¥1,052

128.08%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.82 $2.82

$1.78 ¥282

58.43%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.44 $3.44

$2.15 ¥340

60.00%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.54 $1.54

$1.68 ¥266

-8.33%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$40.99 $40.99

$54.3 ¥8,582

-24.54%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.80 $2.80

$4.65 ¥735

-39.78%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.60 $1.60

$2.81 ¥444

-43.06%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$34.34 $34.34

$18.30 ¥2,890

87.65%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.94 $0.94

$1.13 ¥178

-16.81%

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

$34.0K $34.0K

$21.4K ¥3.4M

59.10%

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

$26.8K $26.8K

$15.1K ¥2.4M

76.76%

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

$223 $223

$136 ¥21.5K

63.79%

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

$58.9 $58.9

$23.88 ¥3,773

146.65%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$70.6 $70.6

$31.10 ¥4,913

126.98%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.7 $57.7

$51.5 ¥8,140

12.00%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.53 $16.53

Cinema Ticket

$14.26 $14.26

$12.95 ¥2,046

10.12%

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

$1,511 $1,511

$464 ¥73.3K

225.53%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$20.9K $20.9K

$13.6K ¥2.1M

54.05%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$51.3 $51.3

$26.48 ¥4,184

93.62%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.17 $44.17

$31.63 ¥4,997

39.65%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$87.0 $87.0

$67.2 ¥10.6K

29.53%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$104 $104

$79.9 ¥12.6K

30.68%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,940 $1,940

$401 ¥63.4K

383.26%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,316 $1,316

$260 ¥41.1K

405.93%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,664 $3,664

$1,102 ¥174.2K

232.42%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,565 $2,565

$528 ¥83.3K

386.28%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,354 $7,354

$3,937 ¥622.0K

86.80%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,129 $3,129

$1,554 ¥245.6K

101.32%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$5,286 $5,286

$2,553 ¥403.3K

107.07%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.79

2.21

207.24%

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

Last update for Austin, TX: October 19, 2026

Last update for Ibaraki: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Austin, TX

$1.3K 48.8%

Ibaraki

$260 23% 80.2% $1.1K

Groceries & Markets

Austin, TX

$406 15.1%

Ibaraki

$300 26.5% 26.2% $106

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Austin, TX

$352 13.1%

Ibaraki

$191 16.9% 45.8% $161

Eating Out

Austin, TX

$350 13%

Ibaraki

$130 11.5% 62.9% $220

Clothing & Footwear

Austin, TX

$129 4.8%

Ibaraki

$92 8.2% 28.5% $37

Sport & Entertainment

Austin, TX

$86 3.2%

Ibaraki

$77 6.9% 10.2% $8.8

Getting Around

Austin, TX

$58 2.2%

Ibaraki

$80 7.1% 37.7% $22

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,940 in Austin, TX and $401 in Ibaraki. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Austin, TX pays 107% 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 $31.00 in Ibaraki for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $406 vs $300 per month, with Ibaraki cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Austin, TX

🇯🇵 Ibaraki

🕒 Local time

16:47 4:47 PM

06:47 6:47 AM

14 h ahead of Austin, TX

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

974,447

287,730

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Japanese Yen JPY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.89 EUR

1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD

1,000 JPY = 5.63 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

JPY, EUR to USD – United States Dollar Converter

🇯🇵 Japanese Yen (¥)

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

United States Dollar exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.89 EUR).

Japanese Yen exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 158 JPY (1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD). 1 EUR = 178 JPY (1,000 JPY = 5.63 EUR).

JPY to USD in detail →

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Between locations

Austin, TX Ibaraki 10,880 km ≈ 14 h nonstop flight

From you

Austin, TX
Ibaraki

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 Ibaraki: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Ibaraki wins on cost – living expenses run 139% lower than in Austin, TX. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Ibaraki the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay runs 107% 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: $1,940 in Austin, TX versus $401 in Ibaraki. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $2,698 per month in Austin, TX versus $1,130 in Ibaraki – a 139% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Ibaraki runs roughly 33% less than in Austin, TX. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $1,130 in Ibaraki versus $2,698 in Austin, TX, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Ibaraki but tight or insufficient in Austin, TX. The gap between the two cities makes Ibaraki 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 Ibaraki 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 Ibaraki gentler on the wallet – expenses run 139% less than in Austin, TX. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.