Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Austin, TX and Nogales

For one person, living is cheaper in Nogales: $1,138 a month against $2,704 in Austin, TX, rent and utilities included – about $18,800 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
56

Cost of Living Index in Nogales
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Nogales Living Index

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Austin, TX

🇺🇸 United States

$2,704

/mo nomad

Nogales

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,138

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,704 in Austin, TX versus $1,138 in Nogales.

Austin, TX $2,704
Nogales $1,138

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,133 in Austin, TX versus $1,854 in Nogales.

Austin, TX $4,133
Nogales $1,854

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,562 in Austin, TX versus $2,570 in Nogales.

Austin, TX $5,562
Nogales $2,570

Living in Austin, TX is roughly 138% more expensive than in Nogales, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Austin, TX is 102% above, Nogales is 15% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$20.22 $20.22

$10.96 MX$199

84.49%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$85.0 $85.0

$45.05 MX$820

88.75%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.35 $12.35

$8.37 MX$152

47.55%

Cappuccino

$5.47 $5.47

$3.62 MX$65.8

51.10%

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

$3.82 $3.82

$1.35 MX$24.56

182.96%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.50 $2.50

$1.04 MX$18.83

140.38%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.06 $8.06

$2.58 MX$46.86

212.40%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.99 $8.99

$4.10 MX$74.6

119.27%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.13 $1.13

$1.58 MX$28.83

-28.48%

White Bread (500g)

$3.78 $3.78

$2.63 MX$47.77

43.73%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.25 $3.25

$1.73 MX$31.56

87.86%

Eggs

$4.14 $4.14

$2.55 MX$46.34

62.35%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.08 $13.08

$8.49 MX$154

54.06%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$14.31 $14.31

$8.51 MX$155

68.16%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.96 $15.96

$11.84 MX$215

34.80%

Apples (1kg)

$4.38 $4.38

$2.73 MX$49.58

60.44%

Banana (1kg)

$1.45 $1.45

$1.59 MX$28.89

-8.81%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.54 $4.54

$1.91 MX$34.83

137.70%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.19 $4.19

$1.85 MX$33.73

126.49%

Potato (1kg)

$2.63 $2.63

$1.96 MX$35.68

34.18%

Onion (1kg)

$2.36 $2.36

$1.92 MX$34.86

22.92%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.76 $1.76

$1.45 MX$26.30

21.38%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.16 $2.16

$1.11 MX$20.12

94.59%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$9.81 $9.81

$4.33 MX$78.7

126.56%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.72 $14.72

$10.64 MX$194

38.35%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.78 $2.78

$1.84 MX$33.40

51.09%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.48 $3.48

$3.25 MX$59.2

7.08%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.49 $1.49

$0.69 MX$12.54

115.94%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$40.51 $40.51

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.67 $2.67

$2.58 MX$47.00

3.49%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.58 $1.58

$2.06 MX$37.44

-23.30%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$35.29 $35.29

$11.28 MX$205

212.85%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.99 $0.99

$1.48 MX$26.89

-33.11%

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

$35.8K $35.8K

$21.2K MX$385.8K

68.82%

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

$27.2K $27.2K

$24.9K MX$452.4K

9.27%

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

$219 $219

$62.4 MX$1,136

251.17%

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

$58.0 $58.0

$22.44 MX$408

158.42%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$68.4 $68.4

$30.41 MX$553

124.79%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.9 $57.9

$34.79 MX$633

66.43%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$14.82 $14.82

$20.65 MX$376

-28.23%

Cinema Ticket

$14.13 $14.13

$5.22 MX$94.9

170.69%

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

$1,509 $1,509

$224 MX$4,067

575.03%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$21.5K $21.5K

$4,654 MX$84.7K

361.02%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$51.7 $51.7

$55.1 MX$1,002

-6.23%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.05 $44.05

$42.38 MX$771

3.94%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$85.1 $85.1

$103 MX$1,874

-17.40%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$105 $105

$92.4 MX$1,681

13.96%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,932 $1,932

$614 MX$11.2K

214.48%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,272 $1,272

$400 MX$7,273

218.23%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,670 $3,670

$1,072 MX$19.5K

242.30%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,525 $2,525

$786 MX$14.3K

221.29%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,617 $7,617

$1,927 MX$35.1K

295.21%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,199 $3,199

$1,151 MX$20.9K

178.05%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$5,105 $5,105

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.79

11.3

-39.91%

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

Last update for Austin, TX: October 5, 2026

Last update for Nogales: October 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Austin, TX

$1.3K 48.2%

Nogales

$400 34.4% 68.6% $873

Groceries & Markets

Austin, TX

$403 15.3%

Nogales

$269 23.1% 33.3% $134

Eating Out

Austin, TX

$348 13.2%

Nogales

$187 16.1% 46.3% $161

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Austin, TX

$346 13.1%

Nogales

$115 9.9% 66.6% $230

Clothing & Footwear

Austin, TX

$129 4.9%

Nogales

$132 11.3% 2.4% $3.1

Sport & Entertainment

Austin, TX

$86 3.3%

Nogales

$45 3.9% 47.5% $41

Getting Around

Austin, TX

$57 2.2%

Nogales

$16 * 1.3% 72.6% $41

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 $614 in Nogales. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $85.0 in Austin, TX vs $45.00 in Nogales for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $403 vs $269 per month, with Nogales cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Austin, TX

🇲🇽 Nogales

🕒 Local time

02:19 2:19 AM

00:19 12:19 AM

2 h behind Austin, TX

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

974,447

261,137

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.892 EUR

100 MXN = 5.5 USD

100 MXN = 4.9 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, EUR to USD – United States Dollar Converter

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

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

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 18.19 MXN (100 MXN = 5.5 USD). 1 EUR = 20.4 MXN (100 MXN = 4.9 EUR).

MXN to USD in detail →

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Between locations

Austin, TX Nogales 1,270 km ≈ 2 h nonstop flight

From you

Austin, TX
Nogales

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 Nogales: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Nogales wins on cost – living expenses run 138% lower than in Austin, TX. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Nogales the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You'd need roughly $4,055 in Austin, TX and $1,707 in Nogales 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 $614 in Nogales. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $1,509 in Austin, TX versus $224 in Nogales. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Nogales – 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 $1,138 in Nogales versus $2,704 in Austin, TX, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Nogales but tight or insufficient in Austin, TX. The gap between the two cities makes Nogales 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 Nogales gentler on the wallet – expenses run 138% less than in Austin, TX. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.