Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Austin, TX and Karnal

For one person, living is cheaper in Karnal: $336 a month against $2,663 in Austin, TX, rent and utilities included – about $27,900 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
16

Cost of Living Index in Karnal
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Karnal Living Index

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Austin, TX

🇺🇸 United States

$2,663

/mo nomad

Karnal

🇮🇳 India

$336

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,663 in Austin, TX versus $336 in Karnal.

Austin, TX $2,663
Karnal $336

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,133 in Austin, TX versus $540 in Karnal.

Austin, TX $4,133
Karnal $540

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,603 in Austin, TX versus $744 in Karnal.

Austin, TX $5,603
Karnal $744

Living in Austin, TX is roughly 693% more expensive than in Karnal, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Austin, TX is 97% above, Karnal is 75% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$20.77 $20.77

$1.59 ₹151

1206.29%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$84.6 $84.6

$10.31 ₹979

720.47%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.32 $12.32

$1.95 ₹185

531.79%

Cappuccino

$5.63 $5.63

$1.56 ₹148

260.90%

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

$3.72 $3.72

$0.36 ₹34.56

933.33%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.50 $2.50

$0.10 ₹9.25

2400.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.05 $8.05

$1.28 ₹122

528.91%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$9.01 $9.01

$2.37 ₹225

280.17%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.12 $1.12

$0.56 ₹53.2

100.00%

White Bread (500g)

$3.75 $3.75

$0.51 ₹48.35

635.29%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.26 $3.26

$0.74 ₹70.7

340.54%

Eggs

$4.17 $4.17

$0.86 ₹81.3

384.88%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.90 $12.90

$5.04 ₹478

155.95%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$14.16 $14.16

$3.34 ₹318

323.95%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.22 $16.22

Apples (1kg)

$4.33 $4.33

$2.20 ₹209

96.82%

Banana (1kg)

$1.46 $1.46

$0.55 ₹51.9

165.45%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.51 $4.51

$1.19 ₹113

278.99%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.34 $4.34

$0.38 ₹36.13

1042.11%

Potato (1kg)

$2.58 $2.58

$0.29 ₹27.90

789.66%

Onion (1kg)

$2.35 $2.35

$0.29 ₹27.74

710.34%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.78 $1.78

$0.61 ₹57.7

191.80%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.22 $2.22

$0.29 ₹27.77

665.52%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$9.88 $9.88

$3.46 ₹328

185.55%

Wine (Bottle)

$15.08 $15.08

$8.81 ₹836

71.17%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.92 $2.92

$1.23 ₹117

137.40%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.46 $3.46

$1.71 ₹163

102.34%

Buffalo Round (or Equivalent Back Leg Red Meat) (1kg)

$6.25 ₹594

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.49 $1.49

$0.15 ₹14.71

893.33%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$41.72 $41.72

$16.93 ₹1,608

146.43%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.73 $2.73

$0.32 ₹30.64

753.13%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.66 $1.66

$0.10 ₹9.42

1560.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$35.30 $35.30

$1.53 ₹145

2207.19%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.95 $0.95

$1.03 ₹98.2

-7.77%

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

$36.0K $36.0K

$7,718 ₹732.9K

367.07%

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

$27.1K $27.1K

$12.4K ₹1.2M

117.48%

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

$229 $229

$42.78 ₹4,062

435.27%

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

$59.4 $59.4

$2.56 ₹243

2219.92%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$69.9 $69.9

$5.63 ₹534

1141.74%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.2 $57.2

$12.97 ₹1,232

341.33%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.33 $16.33

$4.09 ₹388

299.27%

Cinema Ticket

$14.28 $14.28

$2.64 ₹250

440.91%

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

$1,506 $1,506

$26.53 ₹2,520

5576.10%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$21.5K $21.5K

$618 ₹58.7K

3373.07%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$52.8 $52.8

$12.33 ₹1,171

328.30%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$43.82 $43.82

$27.55 ₹2,616

59.06%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$84.8 $84.8

$46.72 ₹4,436

81.44%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$103 $103

$21.73 ₹2,064

374.05%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,907 $1,907

$64.4 ₹6,116

2861.60%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,274 $1,274

$45.01 ₹4,274

2730.66%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,664 $3,664

$181 ₹17.2K

1926.37%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,538 $2,538

$129 ₹12.3K

1860.51%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,614 $7,614

$1,128 ₹107.1K

575.15%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,157 $3,157

$371 ₹35.2K

751.28%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$5,121 $5,121

$442 ₹42.0K

1058.02%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.79

8.58

-20.86%

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

Last update for Austin, TX: October 12, 2026

Last update for Karnal: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Austin, TX

$1.3K 47.8%

Karnal

$45 13.4% 96.5% $1.2K

Groceries & Markets

Austin, TX

$405 15.2%

Karnal

$104 31.1% 74.2% $300

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Austin, TX

$358 13.5%

Karnal

$51 15.2% 85.8% $307

Eating Out

Austin, TX

$354 13.3%

Karnal

$50 15% 85.8% $304

Clothing & Footwear

Austin, TX

$128 4.8%

Karnal

$49 14.5% 61.9% $79

Sport & Entertainment

Austin, TX

$86 3.2%

Karnal

$18 5.4% 78.7% $68

Getting Around

Austin, TX

$59 2.2%

Karnal

$18 5.5% 68.7% $40

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,907 in Austin, TX and $64.4 in Karnal. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Austin, TX pays 1058% 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 $10.00 in Karnal for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $405 vs $104 per month, with Karnal cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Austin, TX

🇮🇳 Karnal

🕒 Local time

18:23 6:23 PM

04:53 4:53 AM

10 h 30 min ahead of Austin, TX

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

974,447

286,974

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Indian Rupee INR ₹

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.888 EUR

1,000 INR = 10.53 USD

1,000 INR = 9.35 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

INR, EUR to USD – United States Dollar Converter

🇮🇳 Indian Rupee (₹)

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

United States Dollar exchange rates as of October 16, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.13 USD (1 USD = 0.888 EUR).

Indian Rupee exchange rates as of October 16, 2026: 1 USD = 94.96 INR (100 INR = 1.05 USD). 1 EUR = 107 INR (1,000 INR = 9.35 EUR).

INR to USD in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Austin, TX Karnal 13,330 km ≈ 17 h nonstop flight

From you

Austin, TX
Karnal

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 Karnal: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Karnal wins on cost – living expenses run 693% lower than in Austin, TX. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Karnal the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay runs 1058% 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 $64.4 in Karnal. 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 $336 in Karnal – a 693% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Karnal runs roughly 146% less than in Austin, TX. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $336 in Karnal versus $2,663 in Austin, TX, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Karnal but tight or insufficient in Austin, TX. The gap between the two cities makes Karnal 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 Karnal 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 Karnal gentler on the wallet – expenses run 693% less than in Austin, TX. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.