Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Austin, TX and Lubumbashi

For one person, living is cheaper in Lubumbashi: $1,228 a month against $2,663 in Austin, TX, rent and utilities included – about $17,200 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
60

Cost of Living Index in Lubumbashi
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Lubumbashi Living Index

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Austin, TX

🇺🇸 United States

$2,663

/mo nomad

Lubumbashi

🇨🇩 Democratic Republic of the Congo

$1,228

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,663 in Austin, TX versus $1,228 in Lubumbashi.

Austin, TX $2,663
Lubumbashi $1,228

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,133 in Austin, TX versus $2,727 in Lubumbashi.

Austin, TX $4,133
Lubumbashi $2,727

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,603 in Austin, TX versus $4,226 in Lubumbashi.

Austin, TX $5,603
Lubumbashi $4,226

Living in Austin, TX is roughly 117% more expensive than in Lubumbashi, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Austin, TX is 97% above, Lubumbashi is 9% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$20.77 $20.77

$9.91 CDF 22.5K

109.59%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$84.6 $84.6

$99.1 CDF 224.6K

-14.67%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.32 $12.32

$9.92 CDF 22.5K

24.19%

Cappuccino

$5.63 $5.63

$4.03 CDF 9,131

39.70%

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

$3.72 $3.72

$1.08 CDF 2,458

244.44%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.50 $2.50

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.05 $8.05

$1.99 CDF 4,508

304.52%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$9.01 $9.01

$2.54 CDF 5,756

254.72%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.12 $1.12

$1.96 CDF 4,446

-42.86%

White Bread (500g)

$3.75 $3.75

$1.22 CDF 2,764

207.38%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.26 $3.26

$3.18 CDF 7,204

2.52%

Eggs

$4.17 $4.17

$2.10 CDF 4,761

98.57%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.90 $12.90

$14.77 CDF 33.5K

-12.66%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$14.16 $14.16

$7.70 CDF 17.4K

83.90%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.22 $16.22

$15.52 CDF 35.2K

4.51%

Apples (1kg)

$4.33 $4.33

$4.96 CDF 11.2K

-12.70%

Banana (1kg)

$1.46 $1.46

$3.07 CDF 6,960

-52.44%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.51 $4.51

$4.88 CDF 11.1K

-7.58%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.34 $4.34

$2.98 CDF 6,745

45.64%

Potato (1kg)

$2.58 $2.58

$2.56 CDF 5,810

0.78%

Onion (1kg)

$2.35 $2.35

$2.66 CDF 6,020

-11.65%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.78 $1.78

$0.98 CDF 2,220

81.63%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.22 $2.22

$1.22 CDF 2,774

81.97%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$9.88 $9.88

$4.07 CDF 9,227

142.75%

Wine (Bottle)

$15.08 $15.08

$12.73 CDF 28.8K

18.46%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.92 $2.92

$1.15 CDF 2,600

153.91%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.46 $3.46

$2.08 CDF 4,719

66.35%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.49 $1.49

$1.01 CDF 2,289

47.52%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$41.72 $41.72

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.73 $2.73

$4.47 CDF 10.1K

-38.93%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.66 $1.66

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$35.30 $35.30

$9.87 CDF 22.4K

257.65%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.95 $0.95

$1.48 CDF 3,361

-35.81%

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

$36.0K $36.0K

$25.1K CDF 56.8M

43.88%

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

$27.1K $27.1K

$30.6K CDF 69.3M

-11.46%

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

$229 $229

$99.9 CDF 226.3K

129.27%

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

$59.4 $59.4

$20.13 CDF 45.6K

195.03%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$69.9 $69.9

$60.3 CDF 136.6K

15.94%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.2 $57.2

$73.6 CDF 166.8K

-22.25%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.33 $16.33

Cinema Ticket

$14.28 $14.28

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

$1,506 $1,506

$132 CDF 297.9K

1044.97%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$21.5K $21.5K

$4,456 CDF 10.1M

381.51%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$52.8 $52.8

$22.35 CDF 50.6K

136.29%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$43.82 $43.82

$22.55 CDF 51.1K

94.32%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$84.8 $84.8

$59.1 CDF 133.9K

43.46%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$103 $103

$86.5 CDF 196.0K

19.09%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,907 $1,907

$862 CDF 2.0M

121.23%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,274 $1,274

$376 CDF 851.7K

238.89%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,664 $3,664

$2,522 CDF 5.7M

45.32%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,538 $2,538

$2,051 CDF 4.6M

23.76%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,614 $7,614

$1,012 CDF 2.3M

652.39%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,157 $3,157

$499 CDF 1.1M

532.80%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$5,121 $5,121

$1,064 CDF 2.4M

381.16%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.79

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

Last update for Austin, TX: October 12, 2026

Last update for Lubumbashi: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Austin, TX

$1.3K 47.8%

Lubumbashi

$376 30.6% 70.5% $898

Groceries & Markets

Austin, TX

$405 15.2%

Lubumbashi

$327 26.6% 19.2% $78

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Austin, TX

$358 13.5%

Lubumbashi

$180 14.7% 49.7% $178

Eating Out

Austin, TX

$354 13.3%

Lubumbashi

$177 * 14.4% 50% $177

Clothing & Footwear

Austin, TX

$128 4.8%

Lubumbashi

$86 7% 33% $42

Sport & Entertainment

Austin, TX

$86 3.2%

Lubumbashi

$74 * 6% 14.2% $12

Getting Around

Austin, TX

$59 2.2%

Lubumbashi

$8.5 * 0.7% 85.5% $50

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 $1,907 in Austin, TX and $862 in Lubumbashi. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Austin, TX pays 381% 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 $99.0 in Lubumbashi. Groceries flip the comparison at $405 vs $327, with Lubumbashi cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Austin, TX

🇨🇩 Lubumbashi

🕒 Local time

13:31 1:31 PM

20:31 8:31 PM

7 h ahead of Austin, TX

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

974,447

1,139,064

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Congolese Franc CDF Fr

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.89 EUR

10,000 CDF = 4.41 USD

10,000 CDF = 3.93 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CDF, EUR to USD – United States Dollar Converter

🇨🇩 Congolese Franc (Fr)

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

United States Dollar exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.89 EUR).

Congolese Franc exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 2,265 CDF (10,000 CDF = 4.41 USD). 1 EUR = 2,547 CDF (10,000 CDF = 3.93 EUR).

CDF to USD in detail →

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Between locations

Austin, TX Lubumbashi 14,030 km ≈ 18 h nonstop flight

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Austin, TX
Lubumbashi

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 Lubumbashi: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lubumbashi wins on cost – living expenses run 117% lower than in Austin, TX. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Lubumbashi the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay runs 381% 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 $862 in Lubumbashi. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $1,506 in Austin, TX versus $132 in Lubumbashi. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Lubumbashi – a meal for two runs $99.0 versus $85.0 in Austin, TX. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,228 in Lubumbashi versus $2,663 in Austin, TX, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Lubumbashi but tight or insufficient in Austin, TX. The gap between the two cities makes Lubumbashi 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 Lubumbashi gentler on the wallet – expenses run 117% less than in Austin, TX. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.