Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Austin, TX and Sarande

For one person, living is cheaper in Sarande: $1,285 a month against $2,663 in Austin, TX, rent and utilities included – about $16,500 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
63

Cost of Living Index in Sarande
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Sarande Living Index

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Austin, TX

🇺🇸 United States

$2,663

/mo nomad

Sarande

🇦🇱 Albania

$1,285

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,663 in Austin, TX versus $1,285 in Sarande.

Austin, TX $2,663
Sarande $1,285

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,133 in Austin, TX versus $2,181 in Sarande.

Austin, TX $4,133
Sarande $2,181

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,603 in Austin, TX versus $3,076 in Sarande.

Austin, TX $5,603
Sarande $3,076

Living in Austin, TX is roughly 107% more expensive than in Sarande, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Austin, TX is 97% above, Sarande is 5% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$20.77 $20.77

$9.93 ALL 800

109.16%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$84.6 $84.6

$54.5 ALL 4,392

55.13%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.32 $12.32

$11.03 ALL 888

11.70%

Cappuccino

$5.63 $5.63

$2.23 ALL 180

152.47%

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

$3.72 $3.72

$2.44 ALL 197

52.46%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.50 $2.50

$1.15 ALL 92.8

117.39%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.05 $8.05

$3.52 ALL 283

128.69%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$9.01 $9.01

$4.12 ALL 332

118.69%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.12 $1.12

$2.18 ALL 175

-48.62%

White Bread (500g)

$3.75 $3.75

$1.18 ALL 95.4

217.80%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.26 $3.26

$2.31 ALL 186

41.13%

Eggs

$4.17 $4.17

$3.77 ALL 304

10.61%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.90 $12.90

$12.44 ALL 1,002

3.70%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$14.16 $14.16

$9.09 ALL 732

55.78%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.22 $16.22

$16.98 ALL 1,368

-4.48%

Apples (1kg)

$4.33 $4.33

$1.94 ALL 156

123.20%

Banana (1kg)

$1.46 $1.46

$2.41 ALL 194

-39.42%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.51 $4.51

$1.98 ALL 160

127.78%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.34 $4.34

$1.83 ALL 147

137.16%

Potato (1kg)

$2.58 $2.58

$1.01 ALL 81.5

155.45%

Onion (1kg)

$2.35 $2.35

$1.29 ALL 103

82.17%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.78 $1.78

$1.48 ALL 119

20.27%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.22 $2.22

$0.77 ALL 62.2

188.31%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$9.88 $9.88

$4.82 ALL 388

104.98%

Wine (Bottle)

$15.08 $15.08

$7.46 ALL 601

102.14%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.92 $2.92

$1.61 ALL 129

81.37%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.46 $3.46

$2.06 ALL 166

67.96%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.49 $1.49

$1.10 ALL 88.7

35.45%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$41.72 $41.72

$22.72 ALL 1,830

83.63%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.73 $2.73

$3.69 ALL 297

-26.02%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.66 $1.66

$3.56 ALL 287

-53.37%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$35.30 $35.30

$18.51 ALL 1,491

90.71%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.95 $0.95

$2.23 ALL 180

-57.40%

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

$36.0K $36.0K

$33.1K ALL 2.7M

8.79%

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

$27.1K $27.1K

$27.8K ALL 2.2M

-2.48%

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

$229 $229

$99.9 ALL 8,043

129.27%

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

$59.4 $59.4

$18.16 ALL 1,462

227.04%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$69.9 $69.9

$19.41 ALL 1,563

260.18%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.2 $57.2

$87.5 ALL 7,047

-34.59%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.33 $16.33

$40.89 ALL 3,293

-60.06%

Cinema Ticket

$14.28 $14.28

$9.79 ALL 788

45.86%

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

$1,506 $1,506

$296 ALL 23.8K

409.12%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$21.5K $21.5K

$7,951 ALL 640.3K

169.87%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$52.8 $52.8

$71.9 ALL 5,789

-26.53%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$43.82 $43.82

$47.68 ALL 3,839

-8.10%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$84.8 $84.8

$120 ALL 9,692

-29.57%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$103 $103

$111 ALL 8,958

-7.40%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,907 $1,907

$857 ALL 69.0K

122.55%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,274 $1,274

$373 ALL 30.1K

241.22%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,664 $3,664

$1,094 ALL 88.1K

234.82%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,538 $2,538

$925 ALL 74.5K

174.32%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,614 $7,614

$4,468 ALL 359.8K

70.41%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,157 $3,157

$2,840 ALL 228.7K

11.18%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$5,121 $5,121

$756 ALL 60.9K

577.30%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.79

5.39

25.97%

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

Last update for Austin, TX: October 12, 2026

Last update for Sarande: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Austin, TX

$1.3K 47.8%

Sarande

$373 29.1% 70.7% $901

Groceries & Markets

Austin, TX

$405 15.2%

Sarande

$281 21.9% 30.6% $124

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Austin, TX

$358 13.5%

Sarande

$137 10.7% 61.6% $221

Eating Out

Austin, TX

$354 13.3%

Sarande

$180 14% 49.3% $174

Clothing & Footwear

Austin, TX

$128 4.8%

Sarande

$158 12.3% 23.5% $30

Sport & Entertainment

Austin, TX

$86 3.2%

Sarande

$107 8.3% 24.8% $21

Getting Around

Austin, TX

$59 2.2%

Sarande

$49 3.8% 17.1% $10

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,907 in Austin, TX and $857 in Sarande. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Austin, TX pays 577% 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 $55.0 in Sarande for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $405 vs $281 per month, with Sarande cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Austin, TX

🇦🇱 Sarande

🕒 Local time

07:15 7:15 AM

14:15 2:15 PM

7 h ahead of Austin, TX

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

974,447

17,233

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Albanian Lek ALL L

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.89 EUR

100 ALL = 1.24 USD

100 ALL = 1.1 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ALL, EUR to USD – United States Dollar Converter

🇦🇱 Albanian Lek (L)

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

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

Albanian Lek exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 80.53 ALL (100 ALL = 1.24 USD). 1 EUR = 90.53 ALL (100 ALL = 1.1 EUR).

ALL to USD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Austin, TX Sarande 9,910 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Austin, TX
Sarande

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 Sarande: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Sarande wins on cost – living expenses run 107% lower than in Austin, TX. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Sarande the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay runs 577% 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 $857 in Sarande. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $2,663 per month in Austin, TX versus $1,285 in Sarande – a 107% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Sarande runs roughly 84% less than in Austin, TX. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $1,285 in Sarande versus $2,663 in Austin, TX, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Sarande but tight or insufficient in Austin, TX. The gap between the two cities makes Sarande 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 Sarande gentler on the wallet – expenses run 107% less than in Austin, TX. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.