Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Austin, TX and Targu Mures

For one person, living is cheaper in Targu Mures: $942 a month against $2,704 in Austin, TX, rent and utilities included – about $21,100 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
46

Cost of Living Index in Targu Mures
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Targu Mures Living Index

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Austin, TX

🇺🇸 United States

$2,704

/mo nomad

Targu Mures

🇷🇴 Romania

$942

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Austin, TX and in Targu Mures

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,704 in Austin, TX versus $942 in Targu Mures.

Austin, TX $2,704
Targu Mures $942

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,133 in Austin, TX versus $1,446 in Targu Mures.

Austin, TX $4,133
Targu Mures $1,446

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,562 in Austin, TX versus $1,950 in Targu Mures.

Austin, TX $5,562
Targu Mures $1,950

Living in Austin, TX is roughly 187% more expensive than in Targu Mures, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Austin, TX is 102% above, Targu Mures is 30% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$20.22 $20.22

$9.02 RON 42.67

124.17%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$85.0 $85.0

$42.09 RON 199

102.02%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.35 $12.35

$8.17 RON 38.64

51.16%

Cappuccino

$5.47 $5.47

$2.21 RON 10.43

147.51%

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

$3.82 $3.82

$1.46 RON 6.90

161.64%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.50 $2.50

$1.22 RON 5.78

104.92%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.06 $8.06

$1.94 RON 9.15

315.46%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.99 $8.99

$2.35 RON 11.12

282.55%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.13 $1.13

$1.36 RON 6.41

-16.91%

White Bread (500g)

$3.78 $3.78

$1.12 RON 5.29

237.50%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.25 $3.25

$1.39 RON 6.59

133.81%

Eggs

$4.14 $4.14

$2.92 RON 13.81

41.78%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.08 $13.08

$7.83 RON 37.04

67.05%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$14.31 $14.31

$5.78 RON 27.32

147.58%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.96 $15.96

$10.20 RON 48.24

56.47%

Apples (1kg)

$4.38 $4.38

$0.93 RON 4.39

370.97%

Banana (1kg)

$1.45 $1.45

$1.27 RON 6.01

14.17%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.54 $4.54

$1.45 RON 6.87

213.10%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.19 $4.19

$1.90 RON 8.99

120.53%

Potato (1kg)

$2.63 $2.63

$0.72 RON 3.39

265.28%

Onion (1kg)

$2.36 $2.36

$0.52 RON 2.46

353.85%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.76 $1.76

$0.88 RON 4.15

100.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.16 $2.16

$0.76 RON 3.59

184.21%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$9.81 $9.81

$5.81 RON 27.49

68.85%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.72 $14.72

$7.32 RON 34.64

101.09%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.78 $2.78

$1.07 RON 5.07

159.81%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.48 $3.48

$1.55 RON 7.33

124.52%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.49 $1.49

$0.65 RON 3.07

129.23%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$40.51 $40.51

$25.67 RON 121

57.81%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.67 $2.67

$0.85 RON 4.03

214.12%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.58 $1.58

$0.81 RON 3.82

95.06%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$35.29 $35.29

$7.60 RON 35.94

364.34%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.99 $0.99

$1.87 RON 8.85

-47.06%

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

$35.8K $35.8K

$29.1K RON 137.7K

22.96%

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

$27.2K $27.2K

$25.2K RON 119.2K

7.84%

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

$219 $219

$102 RON 482

115.37%

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

$58.0 $58.0

$9.28 RON 43.89

524.89%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$68.4 $68.4

$8.35 RON 39.49

718.68%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.9 $57.9

$41.67 RON 197

38.95%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$14.82 $14.82

$17.94 RON 84.9

-17.39%

Cinema Ticket

$14.13 $14.13

$6.21 RON 29.38

127.54%

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

$1,509 $1,509

$1,335 RON 6,312

13.08%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$21.5K $21.5K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$51.7 $51.7

$53.4 RON 253

-3.33%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.05 $44.05

$30.39 RON 144

44.95%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$85.1 $85.1

$75.7 RON 358

12.39%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$105 $105

$78.4 RON 371

34.39%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,932 $1,932

$421 RON 1,990

359.23%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,272 $1,272

$290 RON 1,371

339.02%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,670 $3,670

$646 RON 3,055

468.25%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,525 $2,525

$485 RON 2,294

420.66%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,617 $7,617

$2,236 RON 10.6K

240.67%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,199 $3,199

$1,482 RON 7,008

115.94%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$5,105 $5,105

$998 RON 4,722

411.34%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.79

7.47

-9.10%

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

Last update for Austin, TX: October 5, 2026

Last update for Targu Mures: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Austin, TX

$1.3K 48.2%

Targu Mures

$290 30.7% 77.2% $983

Groceries & Markets

Austin, TX

$403 15.3%

Targu Mures

$191 20.3% 52.5% $211

Eating Out

Austin, TX

$348 13.2%

Targu Mures

$148 15.7% 57.4% $200

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Austin, TX

$346 13.1%

Targu Mures

$119 12.7% 65.4% $226

Clothing & Footwear

Austin, TX

$129 4.9%

Targu Mures

$107 11.4% 16.9% $22

Sport & Entertainment

Austin, TX

$86 3.3%

Targu Mures

$54 5.7% 37.2% $32

Getting Around

Austin, TX

$57 2.2%

Targu Mures

$33 3.5% 41.8% $24

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,932 in Austin, TX and $421 in Targu Mures. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Austin, TX pays 411% 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 $42.00 in Targu Mures for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $403 vs $191 per month, with Targu Mures cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Austin, TX

🇷🇴 Targu Mures

🕒 Local time

05:22 5:22 AM

13:22 1:22 PM

8 h ahead of Austin, TX

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

974,447

134,290

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Romanian Leu RON lei

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.892 EUR

1 RON = 0.211 USD

1 RON = 0.189 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

RON, EUR to USD – United States Dollar Converter

🇷🇴 Romanian Leu (lei)

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

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

Romanian Leu exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 4.73 RON (1 RON = 0.211 USD). 1 EUR = 5.3 RON (1 RON = 0.189 EUR).

RON to USD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Austin, TX Targu Mures 9,700 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Austin, TX
Targu Mures

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 Targu Mures: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Targu Mures wins on cost – living expenses run 187% lower than in Austin, TX. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Targu Mures the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay runs 411% 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: $1,932 in Austin, TX versus $421 in Targu Mures. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $2,704 per month in Austin, TX versus $942 in Targu Mures – a 187% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Targu Mures runs roughly 58% less than in Austin, TX. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $942 in Targu Mures versus $2,704 in Austin, TX, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Targu Mures but tight or insufficient in Austin, TX. The gap between the two cities makes Targu Mures 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 Targu Mures 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 Targu Mures gentler on the wallet – expenses run 187% less than in Austin, TX. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.