Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Austin, TX and Koh Tao

For one person, living is cheaper in Koh Tao: $1,038 a month against $2,704 in Austin, TX, rent and utilities included – about $20,000 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
50

Cost of Living Index in Koh Tao
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Koh Tao Living Index

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Austin, TX

🇺🇸 United States

$2,704

/mo nomad

Koh Tao

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,038

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,704 in Austin, TX versus $1,038 in Koh Tao.

Austin, TX $2,704
Koh Tao $1,038

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,133 in Austin, TX versus $1,702 in Koh Tao.

Austin, TX $4,133
Koh Tao $1,702

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,562 in Austin, TX versus $2,367 in Koh Tao.

Austin, TX $5,562
Koh Tao $2,367

Living in Austin, TX is roughly 161% more expensive than in Koh Tao, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Austin, TX is 102% above, Koh Tao is 23% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$20.22 $20.22

$3.75 ฿126

439.20%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$85.0 $85.0

$27.47 ฿920

209.54%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.35 $12.35

$7.44 ฿249

65.99%

Cappuccino

$5.47 $5.47

$2.29 ฿76.7

138.86%

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

$3.82 $3.82

$0.74 ฿24.85

416.22%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.50 $2.50

$0.42 ฿14.14

495.24%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.06 $8.06

$2.11 ฿70.5

281.99%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.99 $8.99

$3.16 ฿106

184.49%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.13 $1.13

$1.56 ฿52.3

-27.56%

White Bread (500g)

$3.78 $3.78

$1.31 ฿43.93

188.55%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.25 $3.25

$1.43 ฿47.89

127.27%

Eggs

$4.14 $4.14

$2.08 ฿69.6

99.04%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.08 $13.08

$18.59 ฿623

-29.64%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$14.31 $14.31

$3.11 ฿104

360.13%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.96 $15.96

$10.34 ฿346

54.35%

Apples (1kg)

$4.38 $4.38

$2.70 ฿90.5

62.22%

Banana (1kg)

$1.45 $1.45

$1.54 ฿51.7

-5.84%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.54 $4.54

$2.16 ฿72.5

110.19%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.19 $4.19

$1.95 ฿65.2

114.87%

Potato (1kg)

$2.63 $2.63

$1.43 ฿48.03

83.92%

Onion (1kg)

$2.36 $2.36

$1.26 ฿42.12

87.30%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.76 $1.76

$1.06 ฿35.35

66.04%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.16 $2.16

$0.51 ฿17.19

323.53%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$9.81 $9.81

$4.06 ฿136

141.63%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.72 $14.72

$17.40 ฿583

-15.40%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.78 $2.78

$1.67 ฿56.0

66.47%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.48 $3.48

$2.63 ฿88.0

32.32%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.49 $1.49

$1.97 ฿65.9

-24.37%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$40.51 $40.51

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.67 $2.67

$2.62 ฿87.6

1.91%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.58 $1.58

$0.91 ฿30.50

73.63%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$35.29 $35.29

$3.48 ฿117

914.08%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.99 $0.99

$1.29 ฿43.27

-23.26%

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

$35.8K $35.8K

$23.8K ฿796.9K

50.41%

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

$27.2K $27.2K

$24.3K ฿813.9K

11.79%

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

$219 $219

$96.6 ฿3,235

126.92%

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

$58.0 $58.0

$11.14 ฿373

420.56%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$68.4 $68.4

$16.85 ฿564

305.70%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.9 $57.9

$54.6 ฿1,827

6.12%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$14.82 $14.82

$11.61 ฿389

27.65%

Cinema Ticket

$14.13 $14.13

$7.88 ฿264

79.31%

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

$1,509 $1,509

$547 ฿18.3K

175.91%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$21.5K $21.5K

$11.4K ฿383.3K

87.42%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$51.7 $51.7

$62.7 ฿2,100

-17.63%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.05 $44.05

$28.43 ฿952

54.94%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$85.1 $85.1

$96.2 ฿3,220

-11.52%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$105 $105

$88.2 ฿2,952

19.43%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,932 $1,932

$535 ฿17.9K

260.84%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,272 $1,272

$354 ฿11.9K

259.48%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,670 $3,670

$1,533 ฿51.3K

139.35%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,525 $2,525

$897 ฿30.0K

181.59%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,617 $7,617

$2,660 ฿89.0K

186.41%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,199 $3,199

$1,917 ฿64.2K

66.87%

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 Tao: October 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Austin, TX

$1.3K 48.2%

Koh Tao

$354 34% 72.2% $918

Groceries & Markets

Austin, TX

$403 15.3%

Koh Tao

$252 24.2% 37.5% $151

Eating Out

Austin, TX

$348 13.2%

Koh Tao

$101 9.7% 70.9% $247

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Austin, TX

$346 13.1%

Koh Tao

$125 12% 63.9% $221

Clothing & Footwear

Austin, TX

$129 4.9%

Koh Tao

$124 11.9% 3.7% $4.8

Sport & Entertainment

Austin, TX

$86 3.3%

Koh Tao

$70 6.8% 18.4% $16

Getting Around

Austin, TX

$57 2.2%

Koh Tao

$15 * 1.5% 73.6% $42

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 $535 in Koh Tao. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $85.0 in Austin, TX vs $27.00 in Koh Tao for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $403 vs $252 per month, with Koh Tao cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Austin, TX

🇹🇭 Koh Tao

🕒 Local time

05:34 5:34 AM

17:34 5:34 PM

12 h ahead of Austin, TX

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

974,447

1,382

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.892 EUR

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.67 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 = 37.52 THB (100 THB = 2.67 EUR).

THB to USD in detail →

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Between locations

Austin, TX Koh Tao 15,150 km ≈ 19 h nonstop flight

From you

Austin, TX
Koh Tao

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 Tao: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Koh Tao wins on cost – living expenses run 161% lower than in Austin, TX. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Koh Tao the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You'd need roughly $4,055 in Austin, TX and $1,557 in Koh Tao 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 $535 in Koh Tao. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $1,509 in Austin, TX versus $547 in Koh Tao. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Koh Tao – a meal for two runs $27.00 versus $85.0 in Austin, TX. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,038 in Koh Tao versus $2,704 in Austin, TX, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Koh Tao but tight or insufficient in Austin, TX. The gap between the two cities makes Koh Tao 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 Tao 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 Tao gentler on the wallet – expenses run 161% less than in Austin, TX. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.