Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Austin, TX and Koh Lanta

For one person, living is cheaper in Koh Lanta: $907 a month against $2,704 in Austin, TX, rent and utilities included – about $21,600 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
45

Cost of Living Index in Koh Lanta
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Koh Lanta Living Index

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Austin, TX

🇺🇸 United States

$2,704

/mo nomad

Koh Lanta

🇹🇭 Thailand

$907

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Austin, TX and in Koh Lanta

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,704 in Austin, TX versus $907 in Koh Lanta.

Austin, TX $2,704
Koh Lanta $907

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,133 in Austin, TX versus $1,498 in Koh Lanta.

Austin, TX $4,133
Koh Lanta $1,498

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,562 in Austin, TX versus $2,089 in Koh Lanta.

Austin, TX $5,562
Koh Lanta $2,089

Living in Austin, TX is roughly 198% more expensive than in Koh Lanta, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Austin, TX is 102% above, Koh Lanta is 32% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$20.22 $20.22

$3.62 ฿121

458.56%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$85.0 $85.0

$25.92 ฿868

228.05%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.35 $12.35

$6.84 ฿229

80.56%

Cappuccino

$5.47 $5.47

$2.26 ฿75.5

142.04%

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

$3.82 $3.82

$0.78 ฿25.96

389.74%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.50 $2.50

$0.36 ฿12.15

594.44%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.06 $8.06

$2.08 ฿69.6

287.50%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.99 $8.99

$2.95 ฿98.7

204.75%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.13 $1.13

$1.53 ฿51.4

-26.14%

White Bread (500g)

$3.78 $3.78

$1.31 ฿43.96

188.55%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.25 $3.25

$1.36 ฿45.45

138.97%

Eggs

$4.14 $4.14

$1.87 ฿62.6

121.39%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.08 $13.08

$17.72 ฿593

-26.19%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$14.31 $14.31

$3.00 ฿101

377.00%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.96 $15.96

$9.85 ฿330

62.03%

Apples (1kg)

$4.38 $4.38

$2.55 ฿85.4

71.76%

Banana (1kg)

$1.45 $1.45

$1.52 ฿50.9

-4.61%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.54 $4.54

$2.04 ฿68.3

122.55%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.19 $4.19

$1.91 ฿63.8

119.37%

Potato (1kg)

$2.63 $2.63

$1.30 ฿43.56

102.31%

Onion (1kg)

$2.36 $2.36

$1.20 ฿40.09

96.67%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.76 $1.76

$1.02 ฿34.11

72.55%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.16 $2.16

$0.46 ฿15.55

369.57%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$9.81 $9.81

$3.80 ฿127

158.16%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.72 $14.72

$16.52 ฿553

-10.90%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.78 $2.78

$1.62 ฿54.4

71.60%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.48 $3.48

$2.53 ฿84.7

37.55%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.49 $1.49

$1.83 ฿61.3

-18.58%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$40.51 $40.51

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.67 $2.67

$2.42 ฿81.1

10.33%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.58 $1.58

$0.82 ฿27.40

92.68%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$35.29 $35.29

$3.00 ฿100

1076.33%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.99 $0.99

$1.18 ฿39.60

-16.10%

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

$35.8K $35.8K

$21.4K ฿716.8K

67.22%

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

$27.2K $27.2K

$20.9K ฿698.6K

30.23%

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

$219 $219

$93.3 ฿3,122

135.14%

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

$58.0 $58.0

$10.49 ฿351

452.81%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$68.4 $68.4

$16.60 ฿556

311.81%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.9 $57.9

$44.05 ฿1,475

31.44%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$14.82 $14.82

$9.20 ฿308

61.09%

Cinema Ticket

$14.13 $14.13

$6.55 ฿219

115.73%

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

$1,509 $1,509

$491 ฿16.4K

207.63%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$21.5K $21.5K

$10.5K ฿351.4K

104.46%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$51.7 $51.7

$59.6 ฿1,997

-13.37%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.05 $44.05

$27.29 ฿914

61.41%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$85.1 $85.1

$90.7 ฿3,038

-6.22%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$105 $105

$83.0 ฿2,778

26.93%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,932 $1,932

$439 ฿14.7K

340.62%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,272 $1,272

$280 ฿9,373

354.50%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,670 $3,670

$1,264 ฿42.3K

190.29%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,525 $2,525

$716 ฿24.0K

252.45%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,617 $7,617

$2,095 ฿70.2K

263.52%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,199 $3,199

$1,519 ฿50.9K

110.61%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$5,105 $5,105

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.79

5.57

21.90%

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

Last update for Austin, TX: October 5, 2026

Last update for Koh Lanta: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Austin, TX

$1.3K 48.2%

Koh Lanta

$280 30.2% 78% $992

Groceries & Markets

Austin, TX

$403 15.3%

Koh Lanta

$241 26% 40.2% $162

Eating Out

Austin, TX

$348 13.2%

Koh Lanta

$97 10.5% 72% $251

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Austin, TX

$346 13.1%

Koh Lanta

$120 13% 65.2% $225

Clothing & Footwear

Austin, TX

$129 4.9%

Koh Lanta

$117 12.7% 8.9% $11

Sport & Entertainment

Austin, TX

$86 3.3%

Koh Lanta

$57 6.2% 33.7% $29

Getting Around

Austin, TX

$57 2.2%

Koh Lanta

$14 * 1.5% 75.7% $43

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,932 in Austin, TX and $439 in Koh Lanta. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $85.0 in Austin, TX vs $26.00 in Koh Lanta for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $403 vs $241 per month, with Koh Lanta cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Austin, TX

🇹🇭 Koh Lanta

🕒 Local time

02:33 2:33 AM

14:33 2:33 PM

12 h ahead of Austin, TX

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

974,447

32,000

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.892 EUR

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, EUR to USD – United States Dollar Converter

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

United States Dollar exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.892 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 33.48 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.55 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

THB to USD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Austin, TX Koh Lanta 15,440 km ≈ 20 h nonstop flight

From you

Austin, TX
Koh Lanta

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 Koh Lanta: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Koh Lanta wins on cost – living expenses run 198% lower than in Austin, TX. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Koh Lanta the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You'd need roughly $4,055 in Austin, TX and $1,361 in Koh Lanta to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,932 in Austin, TX versus $439 in Koh Lanta. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $1,509 in Austin, TX versus $491 in Koh Lanta. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Koh Lanta – a meal for two runs $26.00 versus $85.0 in Austin, TX. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $907 in Koh Lanta versus $2,704 in Austin, TX, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Koh Lanta but tight or insufficient in Austin, TX. The gap between the two cities makes Koh Lanta 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 Koh Lanta 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 Koh Lanta gentler on the wallet – expenses run 198% less than in Austin, TX. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.