Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Ndola and Austin, TX

For one person, living is cheaper in Ndola: $726 a month against $2,663 in Austin, TX, rent and utilities included – about $23,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

35

Cost of Living Index in Ndola
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Ndola Living Index
130

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

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Ndola

🇿🇲 Zambia

$726

/mo nomad

Austin, TX

🇺🇸 United States

$2,663

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $726 in Ndola versus $2,663 in Austin, TX.

Ndola $726
Austin, TX $2,663

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,738 in Ndola versus $4,133 in Austin, TX.

Ndola $1,738
Austin, TX $4,133

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,750 in Ndola versus $5,603 in Austin, TX.

Ndola $2,750
Austin, TX $5,603

Living in Ndola costs roughly 73% less than in Austin, TX, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Ndola is 46% below, Austin, TX is 97% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$5.52 ZMW 110

$20.77 $20.77

-73.42%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$30.75 ZMW 612

$84.6 $84.6

-63.65%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.94 ZMW 98.2

$12.32 $12.32

-59.90%

Cappuccino

$2.75 ZMW 54.7

$5.63 $5.63

-51.15%

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

$0.52 ZMW 10.38

$3.72 $3.72

-86.02%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.26 ZMW 5.20

$2.50 $2.50

-89.60%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.28 ZMW 25.38

$8.05 $8.05

-84.10%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.22 ZMW 44.18

$9.01 $9.01

-75.36%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.60 ZMW 31.86

$1.12 $1.12

42.86%

White Bread (500g)

$1.13 ZMW 22.44

$3.75 $3.75

-69.87%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.01 ZMW 40.08

$3.26 $3.26

-38.34%

Eggs

$1.62 ZMW 32.27

$4.17 $4.17

-61.15%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.37 ZMW 206

$12.90 $12.90

-19.61%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.48 ZMW 129

$14.16 $14.16

-54.24%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.45 ZMW 128

$16.22 $16.22

-60.23%

Apples (1kg)

$1.55 ZMW 30.81

$4.33 $4.33

-64.20%

Banana (1kg)

$2.38 ZMW 47.28

$1.46 $1.46

63.01%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.70 ZMW 73.6

$4.51 $4.51

-17.96%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.50 ZMW 29.93

$4.34 $4.34

-65.44%

Potato (1kg)

$2.59 ZMW 51.6

$2.58 $2.58

0.39%

Onion (1kg)

$1.88 ZMW 37.49

$2.35 $2.35

-20.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.12 ZMW 22.20

$1.78 $1.78

-37.08%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.62 ZMW 12.35

$2.22 $2.22

-72.07%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.08 ZMW 61.3

$9.88 $9.88

-68.83%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.98 ZMW 198

$15.08 $15.08

-33.82%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.42 ZMW 28.17

$2.92 $2.92

-51.37%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.27 ZMW 45.20

$3.46 $3.46

-34.39%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.73 ZMW 14.59

$1.49 $1.49

-51.01%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$41.72 $41.72

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.60 ZMW 51.6

$2.73 $2.73

-4.76%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.47 ZMW 29.15

$1.66 $1.66

-11.45%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.13 ZMW 102

$35.30 $35.30

-85.47%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.34 ZMW 26.57

$0.95 $0.95

41.05%

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

$7,515 ZMW 149.5K

$36.0K $36.0K

-79.15%

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

$27.1K ZMW 538.2K

$27.1K $27.1K

-0.05%

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

$81.5 ZMW 1,622

$229 $229

-64.40%

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

$10.36 ZMW 206

$59.4 $59.4

-82.56%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$55.4 ZMW 1,102

$69.9 $69.9

-20.77%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$57.2 $57.2

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.33 $16.33

Cinema Ticket

$6.10 ZMW 121

$14.28 $14.28

-57.28%

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

$138 ZMW 2,743

$1,506 $1,506

-90.84%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.4K ZMW 326.7K

$21.5K $21.5K

-23.44%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$23.72 ZMW 472

$52.8 $52.8

-55.08%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$15.32 ZMW 305

$43.82 $43.82

-65.04%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$45.00 ZMW 895

$84.8 $84.8

-46.92%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$72.1 ZMW 1,434

$103 $103

-30.01%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$176 ZMW 3,508

$1,907 $1,907

-90.75%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$153 ZMW 3,050

$1,274 $1,274

-87.96%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$384 ZMW 7,630

$3,664 $3,664

-89.53%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,503 ZMW 29.9K

$2,538 $2,538

-40.78%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,614 $7,614

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,157 $3,157

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$602 ZMW 12.0K

$5,121 $5,121

-88.25%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.79

327.10%

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

Last update for Ndola: October 11, 2026

Last update for Austin, TX: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Ndola

$224 30.9%

Austin, TX

$405 15.2% 80.6% $181

Accommodation & Living

Ndola

$153 21.1%

Austin, TX

$1.3K 47.8% 731% $1.1K

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ndola

$147 20.3%

Austin, TX

$358 13.5% 143% $211

Eating Out

Ndola

$106 14.6%

Austin, TX

$354 13.3% 234% $248

Clothing & Footwear

Ndola

$70 9.7%

Austin, TX

$128 4.8% 82.2% $58

Getting Around

Ndola

$13 * 1.8%

Austin, TX

$59 2.2% 356% $46

Sport & Entertainment

Ndola

$12 * 1.7%

Austin, TX

$86 3.2% 603% $74

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 $176 in Ndola and $1,907 in Austin, TX. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Austin, TX pays 751% 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 Ndola vs $85.0 in Austin, TX for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $224 vs $405 per month, with Ndola cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇿🇲 Ndola

🇺🇸 Austin, TX

🕒 Local time

08:00 8:00 AM

01:00 1:00 AM

7 h behind Ndola

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

455,194

974,447

💱 Currency

Zambian Kwacha ZMW ZK

United States Dollar USD $

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZMW = 5.03 USD

100 ZMW = 4.47 EUR

1 USD = 0.89 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

USD, EUR to ZMW – Zambian Kwacha Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇿🇲 Zambian Kwacha (ZK)

Zambian Kwacha exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 19.89 ZMW (100 ZMW = 5.03 USD). 1 EUR = 22.36 ZMW (100 ZMW = 4.47 EUR).

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

USD to ZMW in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Ndola Austin, TX 14,210 km ≈ 18 h nonstop flight

From you

Ndola
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

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

Ndola wins on cost – living expenses run 267% lower than in Austin, TX. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Ndola the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 751% 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: $176 in Ndola versus $1,907 in Austin, TX. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $138 in Ndola 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 Ndola – 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 $726 in Ndola versus $2,663 in Austin, TX, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Ndola but tight or insufficient in Austin, TX. The gap between the two cities makes Ndola 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 Ndola gentler on the wallet – expenses run 267% less than in Austin, TX. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.