Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Calama and Austin, TX

For one person, living is cheaper in Calama: $595 a month against $2,663 in Austin, TX, rent and utilities included – about $24,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

29

Cost of Living Index in Calama
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Calama Living Index
130

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

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Calama

🇨🇱 Chile

$595

/mo nomad

Austin, TX

🇺🇸 United States

$2,663

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Calama and in Austin, TX actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $595 in Calama versus $2,663 in Austin, TX.

Calama $595
Austin, TX $2,663

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,203 in Calama versus $4,133 in Austin, TX.

Calama $1,203
Austin, TX $4,133

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,812 in Calama versus $5,603 in Austin, TX.

Calama $1,812
Austin, TX $5,603

Living in Calama costs roughly 78% less than in Austin, TX, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Calama is 56% below, Austin, TX is 97% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$6.95 CLP 6,841

$20.77 $20.77

-66.54%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$31.49 CLP 31.0K

$84.6 $84.6

-62.77%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.32 $12.32

Cappuccino

$2.05 CLP 2,018

$5.63 $5.63

-63.59%

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

$0.93 CLP 916

$3.72 $3.72

-75.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.94 CLP 929

$2.50 $2.50

-62.40%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.12 CLP 3,074

$8.05 $8.05

-61.24%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.23 CLP 5,149

$9.01 $9.01

-41.95%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.10 CLP 1,087

$1.12 $1.12

-1.79%

White Bread (500g)

$0.84 CLP 825

$3.75 $3.75

-77.60%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.62 CLP 2,575

$3.26 $3.26

-19.63%

Eggs

$4.95 CLP 4,876

$4.17 $4.17

18.71%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.36 CLP 9,217

$12.90 $12.90

-27.44%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.22 CLP 6,119

$14.16 $14.16

-56.07%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.53 CLP 7,413

$16.22 $16.22

-53.58%

Apples (1kg)

$1.26 CLP 1,242

$4.33 $4.33

-70.90%

Banana (1kg)

$1.05 CLP 1,029

$1.46 $1.46

-28.08%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.55 CLP 1,523

$4.51 $4.51

-65.63%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.10 CLP 1,081

$4.34 $4.34

-74.65%

Potato (1kg)

$0.90 CLP 884

$2.58 $2.58

-65.12%

Onion (1kg)

$0.93 CLP 916

$2.35 $2.35

-60.43%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.78 $1.78

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.22 $2.22

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.25 CLP 5,170

$9.88 $9.88

-46.86%

Wine (Bottle)

$4.19 CLP 4,128

$15.08 $15.08

-72.21%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.01 CLP 990

$2.92 $2.92

-65.41%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.25 CLP 1,235

$3.46 $3.46

-63.87%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.95 CLP 931

$1.49 $1.49

-36.24%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$41.72 $41.72

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.73 $2.73

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.43 CLP 1,412

$1.66 $1.66

-13.86%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$35.30 $35.30

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.44 CLP 1,415

$0.95 $0.95

51.58%

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

$36.0K $36.0K

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

$27.1K $27.1K

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

$40.05 CLP 39.4K

$229 $229

-82.51%

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

$59.4 $59.4

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$13.28 CLP 13.1K

$69.9 $69.9

-81.00%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.7 CLP 50.9K

$57.2 $57.2

-9.66%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$20.74 CLP 20.4K

$16.33 $16.33

27.01%

Cinema Ticket

$4.69 CLP 4,617

$14.28 $14.28

-67.16%

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

$306 CLP 301.6K

$1,506 $1,506

-79.65%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$21.5K $21.5K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$36.08 CLP 35.5K

$52.8 $52.8

-31.68%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.38 CLP 27.9K

$43.82 $43.82

-35.24%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$45.82 CLP 45.1K

$84.8 $84.8

-45.95%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$61.8 CLP 60.9K

$103 $103

-39.99%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$327 CLP 322.3K

$1,907 $1,907

-82.83%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$102 CLP 100.6K

$1,274 $1,274

-91.98%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$807 CLP 794.0K

$3,664 $3,664

-77.99%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$608 CLP 599.0K

$2,538 $2,538

-76.03%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,403 CLP 1.4M

$7,614 $7,614

-81.57%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,229 CLP 1.2M

$3,157 $3,157

-61.06%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,110 CLP 1.1M

$5,121 $5,121

-78.32%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.79

-26.36%

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

Last update for Calama: October 13, 2026

Last update for Austin, TX: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Calama

$176 * 29.6%

Austin, TX

$405 15.2% 130% $228

Eating Out

Calama

$114 * 19.1%

Austin, TX

$354 13.3% 211% $240

Accommodation & Living

Calama

$102 17.2%

Austin, TX

$1.3K 47.8% 1147% $1.2K

Clothing & Footwear

Calama

$77 13%

Austin, TX

$128 4.8% 65.3% $51

Sport & Entertainment

Calama

$61 10.3%

Austin, TX

$86 3.2% 40.4% $25

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Calama

$53 * 9%

Austin, TX

$358 13.5% 572% $305

Getting Around

Calama

$11 * 1.8%

Austin, TX

$59 2.2% 436% $48

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 $327 in Calama and $1,907 in Austin, TX. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Austin, TX pays 361% 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: $31.00 in Calama vs $85.0 in Austin, TX for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $176 vs $405 per month, with Calama cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇱 Calama

🇺🇸 Austin, TX

🕒 Local time

11:19 11:19 AM

09:19 9:19 AM

2 h behind Calama

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

157,575

974,447

💱 Currency

Chilean Peso CLP $

United States Dollar USD $

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 CLP = 10.16 USD

10,000 CLP = 9.04 EUR

1 USD = 0.889 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

USD, EUR to CLP – Chilean Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇱 Chilean Peso ($)

Chilean Peso exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 984 CLP (1,000 CLP = 1.02 USD). 1 EUR = 1,107 CLP (10,000 CLP = 9.04 EUR).

United States Dollar exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.889 EUR).

USD to CLP in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Calama Austin, TX 6,620 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Calama
Austin, TX

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

Calama vs Austin, TX: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Calama wins on cost – living expenses run 348% lower than in Austin, TX. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Calama the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 361% lower in Austin, TX. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $327 in Calama versus $1,907 in Austin, TX. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $306 in Calama versus $1,506 in Austin, TX. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Calama – a meal for two runs $31.00 versus $85.0 in Austin, TX. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $595 in Calama versus $2,663 in Austin, TX, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Calama but tight or insufficient in Austin, TX. The gap between the two cities makes Calama 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 Calama gentler on the wallet – expenses run 348% less than in Austin, TX. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.