Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Austin, TX and San Rafael

For one person, living is cheaper in San Rafael: $1,318 a month against $2,704 in Austin, TX, rent and utilities included – about $16,600 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
63

Cost of Living Index in San Rafael
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San Rafael Living Index

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Austin, TX

🇺🇸 United States

$2,704

/mo nomad

San Rafael

🇦🇷 Argentina

$1,318

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Austin, TX and in San Rafael

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,704 in Austin, TX versus $1,318 in San Rafael.

Austin, TX $2,704
San Rafael $1,318

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,133 in Austin, TX versus $2,096 in San Rafael.

Austin, TX $4,133
San Rafael $2,096

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,562 in Austin, TX versus $2,875 in San Rafael.

Austin, TX $5,562
San Rafael $2,875

Living in Austin, TX is roughly 105% more expensive than in San Rafael, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Austin, TX is 102% above, San Rafael is 2% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$20.22 $20.22

$11.20 ARS 17.0K

80.54%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$85.0 $85.0

$49.65 ARS 75.3K

71.26%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.35 $12.35

$14.69 ARS 22.3K

-15.93%

Cappuccino

$5.47 $5.47

$4.34 ARS 6,580

26.04%

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

$3.82 $3.82

$2.42 ARS 3,663

57.85%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.50 $2.50

$1.98 ARS 3,006

26.26%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.06 $8.06

$3.94 ARS 5,969

104.57%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.99 $8.99

$4.42 ARS 6,701

103.39%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.13 $1.13

$1.35 ARS 2,046

-16.30%

White Bread (500g)

$3.78 $3.78

$2.27 ARS 3,435

66.52%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.25 $3.25

$2.67 ARS 4,052

21.72%

Eggs

$4.14 $4.14

$3.18 ARS 4,820

30.19%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.08 $13.08

$14.56 ARS 22.1K

-10.16%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$14.31 $14.31

$6.21 ARS 9,418

130.43%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.96 $15.96

$11.16 ARS 16.9K

43.01%

Apples (1kg)

$4.38 $4.38

$2.38 ARS 3,604

84.03%

Banana (1kg)

$1.45 $1.45

$2.21 ARS 3,347

-34.39%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.54 $4.54

$1.35 ARS 2,048

236.30%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.19 $4.19

$3.30 ARS 5,012

26.97%

Potato (1kg)

$2.63 $2.63

$2.01 ARS 3,055

30.85%

Onion (1kg)

$2.36 $2.36

$1.45 ARS 2,203

62.76%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.76 $1.76

$1.94 ARS 2,935

-9.28%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.16 $2.16

$2.46 ARS 3,725

-12.20%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$9.81 $9.81

$2.82 ARS 4,279

247.87%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.72 $14.72

$5.05 ARS 7,656

191.49%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.78 $2.78

$1.73 ARS 2,625

60.69%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.48 $3.48

$3.05 ARS 4,619

14.10%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.49 $1.49

$1.00 ARS 1,513

49.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$40.51 $40.51

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.67 $2.67

$1.96 ARS 2,966

36.22%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.58 $1.58

$1.02 ARS 1,540

54.90%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$35.29 $35.29

$4.89 ARS 7,412

621.68%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.99 $0.99

$1.27 ARS 1,929

-22.05%

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

$35.8K $35.8K

$26.6K ARS 40.4M

34.36%

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

$27.2K $27.2K

$32.6K ARS 49.4M

-16.60%

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

$219 $219

$135 ARS 205.3K

61.99%

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

$58.0 $58.0

$17.43 ARS 26.4K

232.70%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$68.4 $68.4

$23.44 ARS 35.6K

191.64%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.9 $57.9

$31.21 ARS 47.3K

85.52%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$14.82 $14.82

Cinema Ticket

$14.13 $14.13

$6.91 ARS 10.5K

104.49%

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

$1,509 $1,509

$177 ARS 268.1K

753.66%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$21.5K $21.5K

$4,090 ARS 6.2M

424.69%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$51.7 $51.7

$116 ARS 175.9K

-55.46%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.05 $44.05

$125 ARS 188.9K

-64.63%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$85.1 $85.1

$136 ARS 206.8K

-37.59%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$105 $105

$125 ARS 189.8K

-15.88%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,932 $1,932

$489 ARS 740.9K

295.51%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,272 $1,272

$318 ARS 482.7K

299.72%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,670 $3,670

$937 ARS 1.4M

291.66%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,525 $2,525

$725 ARS 1.1M

248.22%

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

-88.49%

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

Last update for Austin, TX: October 5, 2026

Last update for San Rafael: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Austin, TX

$1.3K 48.2%

San Rafael

$318 24.6% 75% $954

Groceries & Markets

Austin, TX

$403 15.3%

San Rafael

$286 22.1% 29.1% $117

Eating Out

Austin, TX

$348 13.2%

San Rafael

$232 17.9% 33.4% $116

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Austin, TX

$346 13.1%

San Rafael

$176 13.6% 49% $169

Clothing & Footwear

Austin, TX

$129 4.9%

San Rafael

$226 17.5% 75.5% $97

Sport & Entertainment

Austin, TX

$86 3.3%

San Rafael

$45 3.5% 47.7% $41

Getting Around

Austin, TX

$57 2.2%

San Rafael

$11 * 0.9% 80.7% $46

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 $489 in San Rafael. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $85.0 in Austin, TX vs $50.0 in San Rafael for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $403 vs $286 per month, with San Rafael cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Austin, TX

🇦🇷 San Rafael

🕒 Local time

09:14 9:14 AM

11:14 11:14 AM

2 h ahead of Austin, TX

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

974,447

118,850

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Argentine Peso ARS $

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.892 EUR

10,000 ARS = 6.59 USD

10,000 ARS = 5.88 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ARS, EUR to USD – United States Dollar Converter

🇦🇷 Argentine Peso ($)

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

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

Argentine Peso exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 1,517 ARS (10,000 ARS = 6.59 USD). 1 EUR = 1,699 ARS (10,000 ARS = 5.88 EUR).

ARS to USD in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Austin, TX San Rafael 7,850 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Austin, TX
San Rafael

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 San Rafael: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

San Rafael wins on cost – living expenses run 105% lower than in Austin, TX. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making San Rafael the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You'd need roughly $4,055 in Austin, TX and $1,978 in San Rafael 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 $489 in San Rafael. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $1,509 in Austin, TX versus $177 in San Rafael. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in San Rafael – a meal for two runs $50.0 versus $85.0 in Austin, TX. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,318 in San Rafael versus $2,704 in Austin, TX, a $1,000 budget is realistic in San Rafael but tight or insufficient in Austin, TX. The gap between the two cities makes San Rafael 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.

Safety-wise, Austin, TX and San Rafael are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find San Rafael gentler on the wallet – expenses run 105% less than in Austin, TX. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.