Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Austin, TX and La Serena

For one person, living is cheaper in La Serena: $1,094 a month against $2,704 in Austin, TX, rent and utilities included – about $19,300 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
54

Cost of Living Index in La Serena
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La Serena Living Index

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Austin, TX

🇺🇸 United States

$2,704

/mo nomad

La Serena

🇨🇱 Chile

$1,094

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Austin, TX and in La Serena

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,704 in Austin, TX versus $1,094 in La Serena.

Austin, TX $2,704
La Serena $1,094

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,133 in Austin, TX versus $1,814 in La Serena.

Austin, TX $4,133
La Serena $1,814

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,562 in Austin, TX versus $2,534 in La Serena.

Austin, TX $5,562
La Serena $2,534

Living in Austin, TX is roughly 147% more expensive than in La Serena, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Austin, TX is 102% above, La Serena is 18% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$20.22 $20.22

$7.53 CLP 7,356

168.53%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$85.0 $85.0

$48.88 CLP 47.8K

73.96%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.35 $12.35

$8.16 CLP 7,974

51.35%

Cappuccino

$5.47 $5.47

$2.91 CLP 2,842

87.97%

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

$3.82 $3.82

$1.10 CLP 1,076

247.27%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.50 $2.50

$0.64 CLP 627

290.62%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.06 $8.06

$2.11 CLP 2,058

281.99%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.99 $8.99

$3.82 CLP 3,736

135.34%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.13 $1.13

$1.25 CLP 1,219

-9.60%

White Bread (500g)

$3.78 $3.78

$2.38 CLP 2,325

58.82%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.25 $3.25

$1.53 CLP 1,496

112.42%

Eggs

$4.14 $4.14

$3.86 CLP 3,769

7.25%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.08 $13.08

$12.43 CLP 12.1K

5.23%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$14.31 $14.31

$5.99 CLP 5,850

138.90%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.96 $15.96

$12.72 CLP 12.4K

25.47%

Apples (1kg)

$4.38 $4.38

$1.82 CLP 1,781

140.66%

Banana (1kg)

$1.45 $1.45

$1.78 CLP 1,737

-18.54%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.54 $4.54

$1.28 CLP 1,254

254.69%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.19 $4.19

$1.43 CLP 1,394

193.01%

Potato (1kg)

$2.63 $2.63

$1.15 CLP 1,121

128.70%

Onion (1kg)

$2.36 $2.36

$1.22 CLP 1,194

93.44%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.76 $1.76

$1.02 CLP 1,001

72.55%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.16 $2.16

$0.92 CLP 899

134.78%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$9.81 $9.81

$5.30 CLP 5,176

85.09%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.72 $14.72

$5.18 CLP 5,067

184.17%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.78 $2.78

$0.96 CLP 941

189.58%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.48 $3.48

$2.08 CLP 2,033

67.31%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.49 $1.49

$1.04 CLP 1,017

43.27%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$40.51 $40.51

$35.64 CLP 34.8K

13.66%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.67 $2.67

$0.70 CLP 681

281.43%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.58 $1.58

$2.04 CLP 1,999

-22.55%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$35.29 $35.29

$12.37 CLP 12.1K

185.29%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.99 $0.99

$1.43 CLP 1,395

-30.77%

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

$35.8K $35.8K

$20.4K CLP 20.0M

75.34%

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

$27.2K $27.2K

$12.6K CLP 12.4M

114.89%

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

$219 $219

$89.2 CLP 87.2K

145.90%

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

$58.0 $58.0

$11.07 CLP 10.8K

423.85%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$68.4 $68.4

$21.51 CLP 21.0K

217.81%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.9 $57.9

$86.5 CLP 84.5K

-33.06%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$14.82 $14.82

$20.92 CLP 20.4K

-29.16%

Cinema Ticket

$14.13 $14.13

$8.13 CLP 7,948

73.80%

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

$1,509 $1,509

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$21.5K $21.5K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$51.7 $51.7

$44.32 CLP 43.3K

16.56%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.05 $44.05

$61.4 CLP 60.0K

-28.29%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$85.1 $85.1

$92.2 CLP 90.1K

-7.69%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$105 $105

$105 CLP 102.3K

0.65%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,932 $1,932

$429 CLP 419.2K

350.48%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,272 $1,272

$323 CLP 315.5K

294.13%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,670 $3,670

$898 CLP 878.1K

308.48%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,525 $2,525

$728 CLP 711.5K

246.85%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,617 $7,617

$2,070 CLP 2.0M

267.91%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,199 $3,199

$1,353 CLP 1.3M

136.52%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$5,105 $5,105

$718 CLP 701.8K

610.86%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.79

6.5

4.46%

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

Last update for Austin, TX: October 5, 2026

Last update for La Serena: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Austin, TX

$1.3K 48.2%

La Serena

$323 29% 74.6% $950

Groceries & Markets

Austin, TX

$403 15.3%

La Serena

$236 21.1% 41.5% $167

Eating Out

Austin, TX

$348 13.2%

La Serena

$145 13% 58.4% $203

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Austin, TX

$346 13.1%

La Serena

$122 10.9% 64.8% $224

Clothing & Footwear

Austin, TX

$129 4.9%

La Serena

$136 12.2% 5.8% $7.4

Sport & Entertainment

Austin, TX

$86 3.3%

La Serena

$103 9.2% 19.3% $17

Getting Around

Austin, TX

$57 2.2%

La Serena

$51 4.6% 11% $6.3

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,932 in Austin, TX and $429 in La Serena. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Austin, TX pays 611% 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 $49.00 in La Serena for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $403 vs $236 per month, with La Serena cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Austin, TX

🇨🇱 La Serena

🕒 Local time

02:14 2:14 AM

04:14 4:14 AM

2 h ahead of Austin, TX

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

974,447

195,382

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Chilean Peso CLP $

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.892 EUR

10,000 CLP = 10.23 USD

10,000 CLP = 9.12 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CLP, EUR to USD – United States Dollar Converter

🇨🇱 Chilean Peso ($)

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

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

Chilean Peso exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 977 CLP (1,000 CLP = 1.02 USD). 1 EUR = 1,096 CLP (10,000 CLP = 9.12 EUR).

CLP to USD in detail →

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Between locations

Austin, TX La Serena 7,250 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Austin, TX
La Serena

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 La Serena: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

La Serena wins on cost – living expenses run 147% lower than in Austin, TX. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making La Serena the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay runs 611% 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: $1,932 in Austin, TX versus $429 in La Serena. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in La Serena – a meal for two runs $49.00 versus $85.0 in Austin, TX. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

A monthly transit pass in La Serena runs roughly 14% less than in Austin, TX. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $1,094 in La Serena versus $2,704 in Austin, TX, a $1,500 budget is realistic in La Serena but tight or insufficient in Austin, TX. The gap between the two cities makes La Serena 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.

Expats usually find La Serena gentler on the wallet – expenses run 147% less than in Austin, TX. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.