Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Austin, TX and Surrey

For one person, living is cheaper in Austin, TX: $2,663 a month against $3,046 in Surrey, rent and utilities included – about $4,600 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Surrey outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

130

Cost of Living Index in Austin, TX
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Austin, TX Living Index
148

Cost of Living Index in Surrey
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Surrey Living Index

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Austin, TX

🇺🇸 United States

$2,663

/mo nomad

Surrey

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$3,046

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,663 in Austin, TX versus $3,046 in Surrey.

Austin, TX $2,663
Surrey $3,046

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,133 in Austin, TX versus $4,410 in Surrey.

Austin, TX $4,133
Surrey $4,410

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,603 in Austin, TX versus $5,774 in Surrey.

Austin, TX $5,603
Surrey $5,774

Living in Austin, TX costs roughly 13% less than in Surrey, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Austin, TX 97% above, Surrey 126% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$20.77 $20.77

$23.47 £17.61

-11.50%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$84.6 $84.6

$59.1 £44.34

43.13%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.32 $12.32

$9.11 £6.83

35.24%

Cappuccino

$5.63 $5.63

$4.77 £3.58

18.03%

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

$3.72 $3.72

$2.23 £1.67

66.82%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.50 $2.50

$1.44 £1.08

73.61%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.05 $8.05

$6.78 £5.09

18.73%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$9.01 $9.01

$6.00 £4.50

50.17%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.12 $1.12

$1.25 £0.94

-10.40%

White Bread (500g)

$3.75 $3.75

$2.12 £1.59

76.89%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.26 $3.26

$1.51 £1.13

115.89%

Eggs

$4.17 $4.17

$4.18 £3.14

-0.24%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.90 $12.90

$8.19 £6.14

57.51%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$14.16 $14.16

$8.90 £6.68

59.10%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.22 $16.22

$16.11 £12.09

0.68%

Apples (1kg)

$4.33 $4.33

$3.13 £2.34

38.34%

Banana (1kg)

$1.46 $1.46

$1.47 £1.10

-0.68%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.51 $4.51

$1.96 £1.47

130.10%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.34 $4.34

$3.32 £2.49

30.72%

Potato (1kg)

$2.58 $2.58

$1.38 £1.04

86.96%

Onion (1kg)

$2.35 $2.35

$1.83 £1.37

28.42%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.78 $1.78

$1.37 £1.03

29.93%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.22 $2.22

$1.20 £0.90

85.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$9.88 $9.88

$23.12 £17.34

-57.27%

Wine (Bottle)

$15.08 $15.08

$10.78 £8.09

39.89%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.92 $2.92

$2.30 £1.73

26.96%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.46 $3.46

$2.46 £1.84

40.65%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.49 $1.49

$3.99 £2.99

-62.66%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$41.72 $41.72

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.73 $2.73

$5.35 £4.02

-48.97%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.66 $1.66

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$35.30 $35.30

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.95 $0.95

$1.88 £1.41

-49.47%

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

$36.0K $36.0K

$38.6K £29.0K

-6.65%

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

$27.1K $27.1K

$39.9K £29.9K

-32.17%

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

$229 $229

$260 £195

-11.83%

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

$59.4 $59.4

$13.15 £9.87

351.63%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$69.9 $69.9

$34.58 £25.94

102.17%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.2 $57.2

$53.6 £40.20

6.83%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.33 $16.33

$18.26 £13.70

-10.57%

Cinema Ticket

$14.28 $14.28

$13.17 £9.88

8.43%

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

$1,506 $1,506

$2,125 £1,594

-29.15%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$21.5K $21.5K

$29.3K £22.0K

-26.71%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$52.8 $52.8

$52.5 £39.41

0.53%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$43.82 $43.82

$39.35 £29.52

11.36%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$84.8 $84.8

$88.8 £66.6

-4.56%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$103 $103

$92.6 £69.5

11.28%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,907 $1,907

$1,925 £1,444

-0.91%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,274 $1,274

$1,893 £1,420

-32.70%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,664 $3,664

$3,350 £2,513

9.40%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,538 $2,538

$3,303 £2,478

-23.16%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,614 $7,614

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,157 $3,157

$7,198 £5,400

-56.14%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$5,121 $5,121

$4,519 £3,390

13.32%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.79

5.4

25.74%

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

Last update for Austin, TX: October 12, 2026

Last update for Surrey: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Austin, TX

$1.3K 47.8%

Surrey

$1.9K 62.2% 48.6% $619

Groceries & Markets

Austin, TX

$405 15.2%

Surrey

$289 9.5% 28.7% $116

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Austin, TX

$358 13.5%

Surrey

$307 10.1% 14.2% $51

Eating Out

Austin, TX

$354 13.3%

Surrey

$333 10.9% 5.9% $21

Clothing & Footwear

Austin, TX

$128 4.8%

Surrey

$123 4% 3.9% $5

Sport & Entertainment

Austin, TX

$86 3.2%

Surrey

$80 2.6% 6.8% $5.9

Getting Around

Austin, TX

$59 2.2%

Surrey

$21 * 0.7% 63.7% $37

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 $1,907 in Austin, TX and $1,925 in Surrey. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Austin, TX pays 13% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $85.0 in Austin, TX vs $59.0 in Surrey for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $405 vs $289 per month, with Surrey cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Austin, TX

🇬🇧 Surrey

🕒 Local time

22:37 10:37 PM

04:37 4:37 AM

6 h ahead of Austin, TX

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

974,447

585

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

British Pound GBP £

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.89 EUR

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

GBP, EUR to USD – United States Dollar Converter

🇬🇧 British Pound (£)

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

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

British Pound exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

GBP to USD in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Austin, TX Surrey 7,910 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Austin, TX
Surrey

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 Surrey: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Austin, TX and Surrey differ by about 14% in total monthly costs ($2,663 vs $3,046 including rent). Austin, TX is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 13% 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 $1,925 in Surrey. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $1,506 in Austin, TX versus $2,125 in Surrey. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Austin, TX – a meal for two runs $85.0 versus $59.0 in Surrey. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

Both cities are expensive relative to $2,000. Austin, TX 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.

Safety-wise, Austin, TX and Surrey 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 Austin, TX gentler on the wallet – expenses run 14% less than in Surrey. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.