Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Austin, TX and Portmore

For one person, living is cheaper in Portmore: $1,256 a month against $2,689 in Austin, TX, rent and utilities included – about $17,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

128

Cost of Living Index in Austin, TX
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Austin, TX Living Index
60

Cost of Living Index in Portmore
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Portmore Living Index

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Austin, TX

🇺🇸 United States

$2,689

/mo nomad

Portmore

🇯🇲 Jamaica

$1,256

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,689 in Austin, TX versus $1,256 in Portmore.

Austin, TX $2,689
Portmore $1,256

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,112 in Austin, TX versus $2,080 in Portmore.

Austin, TX $4,112
Portmore $2,080

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,534 in Austin, TX versus $2,904 in Portmore.

Austin, TX $5,534
Portmore $2,904

Living in Austin, TX is roughly 114% more expensive than in Portmore, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Austin, TX is 99% above, Portmore is 7% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$21.34 $21.34

$10.43 JMD 1,646

104.60%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$87.9 $87.9

$62.8 JMD 9,910

39.91%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.44 $12.44

$8.29 JMD 1,308

50.06%

Cappuccino

$5.60 $5.60

$5.37 JMD 847

4.28%

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

$3.65 $3.65

$0.92 JMD 145

296.74%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.39 $2.39

$0.66 JMD 104

262.12%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.82 $7.82

$2.21 JMD 349

253.85%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.75 $8.75

$2.22 JMD 350

294.14%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.12 $1.12

$3.01 JMD 475

-62.79%

White Bread (500g)

$3.62 $3.62

$3.56 JMD 562

1.69%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.50 $3.50

$1.04 JMD 164

236.54%

Eggs

$4.45 $4.45

$3.50 JMD 552

27.14%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.18 $13.18

$11.40 JMD 1,799

15.61%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$13.94 $13.94

$6.35 JMD 1,002

119.53%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.46 $16.46

$9.37 JMD 1,478

75.67%

Apples (1kg)

$4.73 $4.73

$6.08 JMD 959

-22.20%

Banana (1kg)

$1.50 $1.50

$3.98 JMD 628

-62.31%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.64 $4.64

$2.93 JMD 463

58.36%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.52 $4.52

$3.00 JMD 474

50.67%

Potato (1kg)

$2.55 $2.55

$3.16 JMD 499

-19.30%

Onion (1kg)

$2.39 $2.39

$2.62 JMD 414

-8.78%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.84 $1.84

$1.60 JMD 252

15.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.13 $2.13

$1.29 JMD 204

65.12%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$10.05 $10.05

$9.67 JMD 1,525

3.93%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.88 $14.88

$11.19 JMD 1,766

32.98%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.82 $2.82

$2.75 JMD 434

2.55%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.29 $3.29

$2.25 JMD 356

46.22%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.23 $1.23

$2.21 JMD 348

-44.34%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$41.43 $41.43

$50.8 JMD 8,008

-18.36%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.68 $2.68

$0.96 JMD 152

179.17%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.63 $1.63

$3.21 JMD 506

-49.22%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$35.20 $35.20

$6.40 JMD 1,010

450.00%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.98 $0.98

$1.27 JMD 200

-22.83%

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

$34.4K $34.4K

$44.7K JMD 7.0M

-23.04%

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

$26.8K $26.8K

$33.2K JMD 5.2M

-19.11%

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

$252 $252

$157 JMD 24.8K

60.30%

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

$59.8 $59.8

$28.95 JMD 4,568

106.70%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$69.7 $69.7

$52.5 JMD 8,284

32.67%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$60.4 $60.4

$60.5 JMD 9,539

-0.15%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.14 $18.14

Cinema Ticket

$13.75 $13.75

$12.98 JMD 2,048

5.93%

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

$1,458 $1,458

$285 JMD 44.9K

412.05%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$26.6K $26.6K

$3,124 JMD 492.9K

750.79%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$52.6 $52.6

$23.32 JMD 3,679

125.73%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$45.76 $45.76

$31.64 JMD 4,992

44.63%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$85.5 $85.5

$77.5 JMD 12.2K

10.23%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$106 $106

$95.9 JMD 15.1K

10.31%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,195 $2,195

$321 JMD 50.6K

584.10%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,269 $1,269

$220 JMD 34.8K

475.88%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$4,000 $4,000

$666 JMD 105.1K

500.50%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,406 $2,406

$589 JMD 92.9K

308.86%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,381 $7,381

$7,530 JMD 1.2M

-1.98%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,964 $2,964

$5,830 JMD 920.0K

-49.16%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$5,043 $5,043

$1,288 JMD 203.2K

291.57%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.82

9.45

-27.83%

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

Last update for Austin, TX: November 2, 2026

Last update for Portmore: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Austin, TX

$1.3K 47.2%

Portmore

$220 17.6% 82.6% $1K

Groceries & Markets

Austin, TX

$407 15.2%

Portmore

$336 26.8% 17.5% $71

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Austin, TX

$382 14.2%

Portmore

$239 19% 37.4% $143

Eating Out

Austin, TX

$356 13.2%

Portmore

$195 15.5% 45.4% $162

Clothing & Footwear

Austin, TX

$130 4.9%

Portmore

$103 8.2% 21.1% $28

Sport & Entertainment

Austin, TX

$88 3.3%

Portmore

$86 6.9% 1.7% $1.5

Getting Around

Austin, TX

$57 2.1%

Portmore

$77 6.1% 33.9% $19

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $2,195 in Austin, TX and $321 in Portmore. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Austin, TX pays about 3.9 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $88 in Austin, TX vs $63 in Portmore for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $407 vs $336 per month, with Portmore cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Austin, TX

🇯🇲 Portmore

🕒 Local time

23:33 11:33 PM

00:33 12:33 AM

1 h ahead of Austin, TX

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

974,447

170,000

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Jamaican Dollar JMD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.891 EUR

1,000 JMD = 6.34 USD

1,000 JMD = 5.65 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

JMD, EUR to USD – United States Dollar Converter

🇯🇲 Jamaican Dollar ($)

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

United States Dollar exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.891 EUR).

Jamaican Dollar exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 158 JMD (1,000 JMD = 6.34 USD). 1 EUR = 177 JMD (1,000 JMD = 5.65 EUR).

JMD to USD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Austin, TX Portmore 2,510 km ≈ 3 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Austin, TX
Portmore

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 Portmore: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Portmore wins on cost – living expenses run 53% lower than in Austin, TX. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Portmore the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay in Austin, TX is about 3.9 times higher, 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: $2,195 in Austin, TX versus $321 in Portmore. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you’ll spend $2,689 per month in Austin, TX versus $1,256 in Portmore – Portmore is about 53% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

A monthly transit pass in Austin, TX runs roughly 18% less than in Portmore. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

Both cities are expensive relative to $1,000. Portmore is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

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.

It comes down to priorities – Portmore wins on affordability, Austin, TX on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.