Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cali and Austin, TX

For one person, living is cheaper in Cali: $1,214 a month against $2,689 in Austin, TX, rent and utilities included – about $17,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

58

Cost of Living Index in Cali
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Cali Living Index
128

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

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Cali

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,214

/mo nomad

Austin, TX

🇺🇸 United States

$2,689

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Cali 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 Cali and in Austin, TX actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,214 in Cali versus $2,689 in Austin, TX.

Cali $1,214
Austin, TX $2,689

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,827 in Cali versus $4,112 in Austin, TX.

Cali $1,827
Austin, TX $4,112

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,439 in Cali versus $5,534 in Austin, TX.

Cali $2,439
Austin, TX $5,534

Living in Cali costs roughly 55% less than in Austin, TX, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Cali is 10% below, Austin, TX is 99% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$5.20 COP 16.7K

$21.34 $21.34

-75.63%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$56.3 COP 181.1K

$87.9 $87.9

-35.95%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.03 COP 19.4K

$12.44 $12.44

-51.53%

Cappuccino

$3.15 COP 10.1K

$5.60 $5.60

-43.75%

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

$2.37 COP 7,611

$3.65 $3.65

-35.07%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.25 COP 7,224

$2.39 $2.39

-5.86%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.36 COP 10.8K

$7.82 $7.82

-57.03%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.51 COP 11.3K

$8.75 $8.75

-59.89%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.67 COP 5,372

$1.12 $1.12

49.11%

White Bread (500g)

$1.75 COP 5,619

$3.62 $3.62

-51.66%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.74 COP 5,601

$3.50 $3.50

-50.29%

Eggs

$3.05 COP 9,798

$4.45 $4.45

-31.46%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.80 COP 28.3K

$13.18 $13.18

-33.23%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.46 COP 30.4K

$13.94 $13.94

-32.14%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.84 COP 34.9K

$16.46 $16.46

-34.14%

Apples (1kg)

$3.75 COP 12.1K

$4.73 $4.73

-20.72%

Banana (1kg)

$1.16 COP 3,737

$1.50 $1.50

-22.67%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.32 COP 4,261

$4.64 $4.64

-71.55%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.04 COP 6,569

$4.52 $4.52

-54.87%

Potato (1kg)

$1.66 COP 5,350

$2.55 $2.55

-34.90%

Onion (1kg)

$1.60 COP 5,162

$2.39 $2.39

-33.05%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.92 COP 2,955

$1.84 $1.84

-50.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.86 COP 2,773

$2.13 $2.13

-59.62%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.51 COP 14.5K

$10.05 $10.05

-55.12%

Wine (Bottle)

$15.11 COP 48.6K

$14.88 $14.88

1.55%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.51 COP 4,872

$2.82 $2.82

-46.45%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.88 COP 6,047

$3.29 $3.29

-42.86%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.07 COP 3,431

$1.23 $1.23

-13.01%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$65.6 COP 210.9K

$41.43 $41.43

58.24%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.19 COP 3,824

$2.68 $2.68

-55.60%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.57 COP 1,830

$1.63 $1.63

-65.03%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.29 COP 10.6K

$35.20 $35.20

-90.65%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.28 COP 4,126

$0.98 $0.98

30.61%

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

$34.8K COP 111.9M

$34.4K $34.4K

1.17%

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

$34.4K COP 110.5M

$26.8K $26.8K

28.10%

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

$104 COP 333.7K

$252 $252

-58.88%

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

$14.63 COP 47.1K

$59.8 $59.8

-75.55%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.06 COP 87.0K

$69.7 $69.7

-61.15%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$30.34 COP 97.6K

$60.4 $60.4

-49.73%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.18 COP 32.8K

$18.14 $18.14

-43.88%

Cinema Ticket

$4.92 COP 15.8K

$13.75 $13.75

-64.22%

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

$414 COP 1.3M

$1,458 $1,458

-71.60%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.1K COP 35.6M

$26.6K $26.6K

-58.32%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$81.6 COP 262.3K

$52.6 $52.6

54.92%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$43.07 COP 138.5K

$45.76 $45.76

-5.88%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$116 COP 372.4K

$85.5 $85.5

35.45%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$100.0 COP 321.6K

$106 $106

-5.50%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$703 COP 2.3M

$2,195 $2,195

-67.95%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$397 COP 1.3M

$1,269 $1,269

-68.69%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,501 COP 4.8M

$4,000 $4,000

-62.46%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$543 COP 1.7M

$2,406 $2,406

-77.43%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,720 COP 5.5M

$7,381 $7,381

-76.70%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,429 COP 4.6M

$2,964 $2,964

-51.79%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$598 COP 1.9M

$5,043 $5,043

-88.14%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

13.88

6.82

103.52%

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

Last update for Cali: November 1, 2026

Last update for Austin, TX: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cali

$397 32.7%

Austin, TX

$1.3K 47.2% 219% $872

Groceries & Markets

Cali

$265 21.8%

Austin, TX

$407 15.2% 54% $143

Clothing & Footwear

Cali

$153 12.6%

Austin, TX

$130 4.9% 14.9% $23

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cali

$145 12%

Austin, TX

$382 14.2% 163% $236

Eating Out

Cali

$140 11.5%

Austin, TX

$356 13.2% 155% $216

Getting Around

Cali

$74 6.1%

Austin, TX

$57 2.1% 22.6% $17

Sport & Entertainment

Cali

$40 3.3%

Austin, TX

$88 3.3% 119% $48

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $703 in Cali and $2,195 in Austin, TX. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Austin, TX pays about 8.4 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $56 in Cali vs $88 in Austin, TX for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $265 vs $407 per month, with Cali cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Cali

🇺🇸 Austin, TX

🕒 Local time

19:00 7:00 PM

18:00 6:00 PM

1 h behind Cali

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,568,609

974,447

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

United States Dollar USD $

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.11 USD

10,000 COP = 2.77 EUR

1 USD = 0.891 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

USD, EUR to COP – Colombian Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇴 Colombian Peso ($)

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 3,217 COP (10,000 COP = 3.11 USD). 1 EUR = 3,611 COP (10,000 COP = 2.77 EUR).

United States Dollar exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.891 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Cali Austin, TX 3,720 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

Cali
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

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

Cali wins on cost – living expenses run 55% lower than in Austin, TX. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Cali the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 88% lower in Cali. 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: $703 in Cali versus $2,195 in Austin, TX. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you’ll spend $1,214 per month in Cali versus $2,689 in Austin, TX – Cali is about 55% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

A monthly transit pass in Austin, TX runs roughly 37% less than in Cali. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

At $1,214 in Cali versus $2,689 in Austin, TX, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Cali but tight or insufficient in Austin, TX. The gap between the two cities makes Cali 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.

It comes down to priorities – Cali wins on affordability, Austin, TX on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.