Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Austin, TX and Skardu

For one person, living is cheaper in Skardu: $426 a month against $2,698 in Austin, TX, rent and utilities included – about $27,300 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
22

Cost of Living Index in Skardu
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Skardu Living Index

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Austin, TX

🇺🇸 United States

$2,698

/mo nomad

Skardu

🇵🇰 Pakistan

$426

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,698 in Austin, TX versus $426 in Skardu.

Austin, TX $2,698
Skardu $426

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,160 in Austin, TX versus $636 in Skardu.

Austin, TX $4,160
Skardu $636

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,622 in Austin, TX versus $847 in Skardu.

Austin, TX $5,622
Skardu $847

Living in Austin, TX is roughly 534% more expensive than in Skardu, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Austin, TX is 99% above, Skardu is 69% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$20.63 $20.63

$1.84 PKR 509

1021.20%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$84.6 $84.6

$11.31 PKR 3,132

647.75%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.07 $12.07

$4.65 PKR 1,286

159.57%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.72 PKR 753

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.11 PKR 1,415

Cappuccino

$5.48 $5.48

$1.68 PKR 464

226.19%

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

$3.80 $3.80

$0.31 PKR 84.5

1125.81%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.47 $2.47

$0.18 PKR 50.3

1272.22%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.05 $8.05

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.88 $8.88

Milk (1 liter)

$1.11 $1.11

$0.86 PKR 238

29.07%

White Bread (500g)

$3.72 $3.72

$0.59 PKR 164

530.51%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.37 $3.37

$1.16 PKR 320

190.52%

Eggs

$4.32 $4.32

$1.20 PKR 333

260.00%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.13 $13.13

$5.40 PKR 1,494

143.15%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$14.15 $14.15

$2.50 PKR 691

466.00%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.33 $16.33

$5.02 PKR 1,389

225.30%

Apples (1kg)

$4.55 $4.55

$1.10 PKR 305

313.64%

Banana (1kg)

$1.46 $1.46

$0.54 PKR 149

170.37%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.71 $4.71

$0.79 PKR 220

496.20%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.15 $4.15

$0.55 PKR 153

654.55%

Potato (1kg)

$2.58 $2.58

$0.28 PKR 76.3

821.43%

Onion (1kg)

$2.35 $2.35

$0.35 PKR 97.5

571.43%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.77 $1.77

$0.46 PKR 127

284.78%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.14 $2.14

$0.38 PKR 104

463.16%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$1.59 PKR 441

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.07 PKR 295

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.04 PKR 563

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$10.10 $10.10

$2.10 PKR 580

380.95%

Wine (Bottle)

$15.19 $15.19

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.82 $2.82

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.44 $3.44

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.54 $1.54

$0.16 PKR 45.37

862.50%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$40.99 $40.99

$9.06 PKR 2,509

352.43%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.80 $2.80

$1.24 PKR 343

125.81%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.60 $1.60

$0.71 PKR 196

125.35%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$34.34 $34.34

$1.83 PKR 506

1776.50%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.94 $0.94

$1.18 PKR 327

-20.34%

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

$34.0K $34.0K

$19.1K PKR 5.3M

78.29%

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

$26.8K $26.8K

$26.2K PKR 7.3M

2.08%

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

$223 $223

$87.8 PKR 24.3K

153.53%

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

$58.9 $58.9

$3.60 PKR 996

1536.11%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$70.6 $70.6

$13.36 PKR 3,697

428.37%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.7 $57.7

$15.33 PKR 4,243

276.39%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.53 $16.53

$7.98 PKR 2,208

107.14%

Cinema Ticket

$14.26 $14.26

$4.88 PKR 1,351

192.21%

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

$1,511 $1,511

$47.71 PKR 13.2K

3066.69%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$20.9K $20.9K

$1,082 PKR 299.5K

1830.63%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$51.3 $51.3

$19.16 PKR 5,304

167.59%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.17 $44.17

$24.54 PKR 6,793

79.99%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$87.0 $87.0

$59.7 PKR 16.5K

45.83%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$104 $104

$34.15 PKR 9,451

205.56%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,940 $1,940

$128 PKR 35.4K

1418.86%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,316 $1,316

$78.3 PKR 21.7K

1581.73%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,664 $3,664

$250 PKR 69.3K

1364.27%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,565 $2,565

$139 PKR 38.4K

1748.34%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,354 $7,354

$1,070 PKR 296.0K

587.61%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,129 $3,129

$494 PKR 136.8K

533.07%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$5,286 $5,286

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.79

-47.77%

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

Last update for Austin, TX: October 19, 2026

Last update for Skardu: October 17, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Austin, TX

$1.3K 48.8%

Skardu

$78 18.4% 94.1% $1.2K

Groceries & Markets

Austin, TX

$406 15.1%

Skardu

$90 21.2% 77.8% $316

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Austin, TX

$352 13.1%

Skardu

$105 24.6% 70.2% $247

Eating Out

Austin, TX

$350 13%

Skardu

$51 11.9% 85.5% $299

Clothing & Footwear

Austin, TX

$129 4.8%

Skardu

$62 14.5% 52% $67

Sport & Entertainment

Austin, TX

$86 3.2%

Skardu

$25 5.9% 70.9% $61

Getting Around

Austin, TX

$58 2.2%

Skardu

$15 3.4% 75% $43

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,940 in Austin, TX and $128 in Skardu. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $85.0 in Austin, TX vs $11.00 in Skardu for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $406 vs $90.0 per month, with Skardu cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Austin, TX

🇵🇰 Skardu

🕒 Local time

18:27 6:27 PM

04:27 4:27 AM

10 h ahead of Austin, TX

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

974,447

260,000

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Pakistani Rupee PKR ₨

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.89 EUR

1,000 PKR = 3.61 USD

1,000 PKR = 3.21 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PKR, EUR to USD – United States Dollar Converter

🇵🇰 Pakistani Rupee (₨)

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

United States Dollar exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.89 EUR).

Pakistani Rupee exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 277 PKR (1,000 PKR = 3.61 USD). 1 EUR = 311 PKR (1,000 PKR = 3.21 EUR).

PKR to USD in detail →

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Between locations

Austin, TX Skardu 12,690 km ≈ 16 h nonstop flight

From you

Austin, TX
Skardu

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 Skardu: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Skardu wins on cost – living expenses run 534% lower than in Austin, TX. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Skardu the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You'd need roughly $4,046 in Austin, TX and $638 in Skardu 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: $1,940 in Austin, TX versus $128 in Skardu. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $2,698 per month in Austin, TX versus $426 in Skardu – a 534% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Skardu runs roughly 352% less than in Austin, TX. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $426 in Skardu versus $2,698 in Austin, TX, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Skardu but tight or insufficient in Austin, TX. The gap between the two cities makes Skardu 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 Skardu 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 Skardu gentler on the wallet – expenses run 534% less than in Austin, TX. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.