Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Guadalajara and Austin, TX

For one person, living is cheaper in Guadalajara: $1,302 a month against $2,704 in Austin, TX, rent and utilities included – about $16,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

64

Cost of Living Index in Guadalajara
Learn more

Guadalajara Living Index
129

Cost of Living Index in Austin, TX
Learn more

Austin, TX Living Index

Jump to prices

Guadalajara

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,302

/mo nomad

Austin, TX

🇺🇸 United States

$2,704

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,302 in Guadalajara versus $2,704 in Austin, TX.

Guadalajara $1,302
Austin, TX $2,704

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,119 in Guadalajara versus $4,133 in Austin, TX.

Guadalajara $2,119
Austin, TX $4,133

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,936 in Guadalajara versus $5,562 in Austin, TX.

Guadalajara $2,936
Austin, TX $5,562

Living in Guadalajara costs roughly 52% less than in Austin, TX, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Guadalajara is 3% below, Austin, TX is 102% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.67 MX$251

$20.22 $20.22

-32.39%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$44.72 MX$821

$85.0 $85.0

-47.41%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.08 MX$167

$12.35 $12.35

-26.48%

Cappuccino

$3.90 MX$71.5

$5.47 $5.47

-28.70%

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

$1.67 MX$30.69

$3.82 $3.82

-56.28%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.17 MX$21.56

$2.50 $2.50

-53.20%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.71 MX$49.70

$8.06 $8.06

-66.38%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.88 MX$89.6

$8.99 $8.99

-45.72%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.76 MX$32.38

$1.13 $1.13

55.75%

White Bread (500g)

$2.62 MX$48.12

$3.78 $3.78

-30.69%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.73 MX$31.68

$3.25 $3.25

-46.77%

Eggs

$2.48 MX$45.56

$4.14 $4.14

-40.10%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.99 MX$165

$13.08 $13.08

-31.27%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.95 MX$183

$14.31 $14.31

-30.47%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.52 MX$211

$15.96 $15.96

-27.82%

Apples (1kg)

$2.92 MX$53.6

$4.38 $4.38

-33.33%

Banana (1kg)

$1.60 MX$29.35

$1.45 $1.45

10.34%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.04 MX$37.37

$4.54 $4.54

-55.07%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.76 MX$32.27

$4.19 $4.19

-58.00%

Potato (1kg)

$2.00 MX$36.77

$2.63 $2.63

-23.95%

Onion (1kg)

$1.80 MX$33.03

$2.36 $2.36

-23.73%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.49 MX$27.41

$1.76 $1.76

-15.34%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.08 MX$19.87

$2.16 $2.16

-50.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.63 MX$84.9

$9.81 $9.81

-52.80%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.82 MX$199

$14.72 $14.72

-26.49%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.94 MX$35.55

$2.78 $2.78

-30.22%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.38 MX$62.1

$3.48 $3.48

-2.87%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.58 MX$10.65

$1.49 $1.49

-61.07%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$30.62 MX$562

$40.51 $40.51

-24.41%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.20 MX$40.31

$2.67 $2.67

-17.60%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.41 MX$25.86

$1.58 $1.58

-10.76%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$12.36 MX$227

$35.29 $35.29

-64.98%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.52 MX$27.90

$0.99 $0.99

53.54%

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

$21.1K MX$387.5K

$35.8K $35.8K

-41.05%

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

$24.1K MX$442.2K

$27.2K $27.2K

-11.38%

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

$49.59 MX$911

$219 $219

-77.38%

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

$22.94 MX$421

$58.0 $58.0

-60.44%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$31.15 MX$572

$68.4 $68.4

-54.43%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$28.66 MX$526

$57.9 $57.9

-50.50%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.30 MX$207

$14.82 $14.82

-23.75%

Cinema Ticket

$6.57 MX$121

$14.13 $14.13

-53.50%

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

$253 MX$4,645

$1,509 $1,509

-83.24%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$10.9K MX$199.8K

$21.5K $21.5K

-49.29%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$60.1 MX$1,104

$51.7 $51.7

16.36%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.27 MX$739

$44.05 $44.05

-8.58%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$108 MX$1,983

$85.1 $85.1

26.95%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$83.1 MX$1,525

$105 $105

-21.13%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$856 MX$15.7K

$1,932 $1,932

-55.69%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$497 MX$9,123

$1,272 $1,272

-60.95%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,571 MX$28.8K

$3,670 $3,670

-57.21%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,009 MX$18.5K

$2,525 $2,525

-60.06%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,101 MX$56.9K

$7,617 $7,617

-59.29%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,953 MX$35.9K

$3,199 $3,199

-38.95%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$776 MX$14.2K

$5,105 $5,105

-84.81%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.68

6.79

72.02%

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

Last update for Guadalajara: October 6, 2026

Last update for Austin, TX: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Guadalajara

$497 37.8%

Austin, TX

$1.3K 48.2% 156% $775

Groceries & Markets

Guadalajara

$280 21.3%

Austin, TX

$403 15.3% 44% $123

Eating Out

Guadalajara

$218 16.6%

Austin, TX

$348 13.2% 59.6% $130

Clothing & Footwear

Guadalajara

$131 10%

Austin, TX

$129 4.9% 1.8% $2.4

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Guadalajara

$104 7.9%

Austin, TX

$346 13.1% 233% $242

Getting Around

Guadalajara

$42 3.2%

Austin, TX

$57 2.2% 35.2% $15

Sport & Entertainment

Guadalajara

$42 3.2%

Austin, TX

$86 3.3% 106% $44

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $856 in Guadalajara and $1,932 in Austin, TX. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Austin, TX pays 558% 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: $45.00 in Guadalajara vs $85.0 in Austin, TX for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $280 vs $403 per month, with Guadalajara cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Guadalajara

🇺🇸 Austin, TX

🕒 Local time

20:56 8:56 PM

21:56 9:56 PM

1 h ahead of Guadalajara

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,385,629

974,447

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

United States Dollar USD $

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.45 USD

100 MXN = 4.86 EUR

1 USD = 0.892 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 18.36 MXN (100 MXN = 5.45 USD). 1 EUR = 20.59 MXN (100 MXN = 4.86 EUR).

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

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Guadalajara Austin, TX 1,210 km ≈ 2 h nonstop flight

From you

Guadalajara
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

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

Guadalajara wins on cost – living expenses run 108% lower than in Austin, TX. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Guadalajara the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 558% 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: $856 in Guadalajara versus $1,932 in Austin, TX. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $1,302 per month in Guadalajara versus $2,704 in Austin, TX – a 108% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Guadalajara runs roughly 32% less than in Austin, TX. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $1,302 in Guadalajara versus $2,704 in Austin, TX, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Guadalajara but tight or insufficient in Austin, TX. The gap between the two cities makes Guadalajara the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Guadalajara delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $1,302 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Guadalajara hard to pass up.

Expats usually find Guadalajara gentler on the wallet – expenses run 108% less than in Austin, TX. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.