Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Austin, TX and Masvingo

For one person, living is cheaper in Masvingo: $606 a month against $2,704 in Austin, TX, rent and utilities included – about $25,200 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
29

Cost of Living Index in Masvingo
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Masvingo Living Index

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Austin, TX

🇺🇸 United States

$2,704

/mo nomad

Masvingo

🇿🇼 Zimbabwe

$606

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,704 in Austin, TX versus $606 in Masvingo.

Austin, TX $2,704
Masvingo $606

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,133 in Austin, TX versus $1,005 in Masvingo.

Austin, TX $4,133
Masvingo $1,005

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,562 in Austin, TX versus $1,405 in Masvingo.

Austin, TX $5,562
Masvingo $1,405

Living in Austin, TX is roughly 346% more expensive than in Masvingo, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Austin, TX is 102% above, Masvingo is 55% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$20.22 $20.22

$10.03 ZWL 268

101.60%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$85.0 $85.0

$44.87 ZWL 1,198

89.50%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.35 $12.35

$5.92 ZWL 158

108.61%

Cappuccino

$5.47 $5.47

$2.93 ZWL 78.3

86.69%

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

$3.82 $3.82

$1.01 ZWL 26.90

278.22%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.50 $2.50

$0.45 ZWL 11.96

455.56%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.06 $8.06

$1.26 ZWL 33.70

539.68%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.99 $8.99

$2.02 ZWL 53.9

345.05%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.13 $1.13

$1.54 ZWL 41.12

-26.62%

White Bread (500g)

$3.78 $3.78

$1.03 ZWL 27.40

266.99%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.25 $3.25

$1.69 ZWL 45.14

92.31%

Eggs

$4.14 $4.14

$1.95 ZWL 52.1

112.31%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.08 $13.08

$11.57 ZWL 309

13.05%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$14.31 $14.31

$5.52 ZWL 147

159.24%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.96 $15.96

$6.50 ZWL 173

145.54%

Apples (1kg)

$4.38 $4.38

$2.92 ZWL 78.1

50.00%

Banana (1kg)

$1.45 $1.45

$1.63 ZWL 43.45

-11.04%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.54 $4.54

$1.99 ZWL 53.2

128.14%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.19 $4.19

$1.58 ZWL 42.20

165.19%

Potato (1kg)

$2.63 $2.63

$1.71 ZWL 45.59

53.80%

Onion (1kg)

$2.36 $2.36

$1.79 ZWL 47.74

31.84%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.76 $1.76

$1.28 ZWL 34.18

37.50%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.16 $2.16

$0.94 ZWL 25.15

129.79%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$9.81 $9.81

$1.94 ZWL 51.9

405.67%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.72 $14.72

$8.22 ZWL 219

79.08%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.78 $2.78

$1.38 ZWL 36.74

101.45%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.48 $3.48

$1.96 ZWL 52.4

77.55%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.49 $1.49

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$40.51 $40.51

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.67 $2.67

$4.08 ZWL 109

-34.56%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.58 $1.58

$2.01 ZWL 53.7

-21.39%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$35.29 $35.29

$4.92 ZWL 131

617.28%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.99 $0.99

$1.85 ZWL 49.47

-46.49%

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

$35.8K $35.8K

$21.9K ZWL 583.3K

63.84%

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

$27.2K $27.2K

$27.4K ZWL 732.5K

-0.98%

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

$219 $219

$50.7 ZWL 1,354

332.31%

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

$58.0 $58.0

$21.58 ZWL 576

168.72%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$68.4 $68.4

$69.9 ZWL 1,866

-2.20%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.9 $57.9

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$14.82 $14.82

Cinema Ticket

$14.13 $14.13

$10.06 ZWL 268

40.46%

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

$1,509 $1,509

$441 ZWL 11.8K

242.04%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$21.5K $21.5K

$8,395 ZWL 224.1K

155.59%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$51.7 $51.7

$23.54 ZWL 628

119.46%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.05 $44.05

$21.02 ZWL 561

109.56%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$85.1 $85.1

$38.55 ZWL 1,029

120.73%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$105 $105

$39.69 ZWL 1,059

165.33%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,932 $1,932

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,272 $1,272

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,670 $3,670

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,525 $2,525

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,617 $7,617

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,199 $3,199

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$5,105 $5,105

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.79

13.69

-50.40%

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

Last update for Austin, TX: October 5, 2026

Last update for Masvingo: October 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Austin, TX

$1.3K 48.2%

Masvingo

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Austin, TX

$403 15.3%

Masvingo

$215 36% 46.7% $188

Eating Out

Austin, TX

$348 13.2%

Masvingo

$149 25.1% 57.1% $199

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Austin, TX

$346 13.1%

Masvingo

$142 23.9% 58.9% $203

Clothing & Footwear

Austin, TX

$129 4.9%

Masvingo

$55 9.3% 57.1% $73

Sport & Entertainment

Austin, TX

$86 3.3%

Masvingo

$20 * 3.4% 76.6% $66

Getting Around

Austin, TX

$57 2.2%

Masvingo

$14 * 2.4% 75.2% $43

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

Cost Breakdown

Dining out: $85.0 in Austin, TX vs $45.00 in Masvingo for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $403 vs $215 per month, with Masvingo cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Austin, TX

🇿🇼 Masvingo

🕒 Local time

21:41 9:41 PM

04:41 4:41 AM

7 h ahead of Austin, TX

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

974,447

72,527

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Zimbabwean Dollar ZWL $

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.892 EUR

100 ZWL = 3.75 USD

100 ZWL = 3.34 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZWL, EUR to USD – United States Dollar Converter

🇿🇼 Zimbabwean Dollar ($)

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

United States Dollar exchange rates as of October 13, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.892 EUR).

Zimbabwean Dollar exchange rates as of October 13, 2026: 1 USD = 26.69 ZWL (100 ZWL = 3.75 USD). 1 EUR = 29.91 ZWL (100 ZWL = 3.34 EUR).

ZWL to USD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Austin, TX Masvingo 14,760 km ≈ 19 h nonstop flight

From you

Austin, TX
Masvingo

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 Masvingo: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Masvingo wins on cost – living expenses run 346% lower than in Austin, TX. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Masvingo the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You'd need roughly $4,055 in Austin, TX and $908 in Masvingo 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.

Childcare runs $1,509 in Austin, TX versus $441 in Masvingo. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Masvingo – a meal for two runs $45.00 versus $85.0 in Austin, TX. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $606 in Masvingo versus $2,704 in Austin, TX, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Masvingo but tight or insufficient in Austin, TX. The gap between the two cities makes Masvingo 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 Masvingo gentler on the wallet – expenses run 346% less than in Austin, TX. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.