Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Portmore and Austin, TX

For one person, living is cheaper in Portmore: $1,256 a month against $2,689 in Austin, TX, rent and utilities included – about $17,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

60

Cost of Living Index in Portmore
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Portmore Living Index
128

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

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Portmore

🇯🇲 Jamaica

$1,256

/mo nomad

Austin, TX

🇺🇸 United States

$2,689

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,256 in Portmore versus $2,689 in Austin, TX.

Portmore $1,256
Austin, TX $2,689

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,080 in Portmore versus $4,112 in Austin, TX.

Portmore $2,080
Austin, TX $4,112

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,904 in Portmore versus $5,534 in Austin, TX.

Portmore $2,904
Austin, TX $5,534

Living in Portmore costs roughly 53% less than in Austin, TX, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Portmore is 7% below, Austin, TX is 99% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.43 JMD 1,645

$21.34 $21.34

-51.12%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$62.8 JMD 9,904

$87.9 $87.9

-28.53%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.29 JMD 1,307

$12.44 $12.44

-33.36%

Cappuccino

$5.37 JMD 847

$5.60 $5.60

-4.11%

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

$0.92 JMD 145

$3.65 $3.65

-74.79%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.66 JMD 104

$2.39 $2.39

-72.38%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.21 JMD 349

$7.82 $7.82

-71.74%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.22 JMD 350

$8.75 $8.75

-74.63%

Milk (1 liter)

$3.01 JMD 475

$1.12 $1.12

168.75%

White Bread (500g)

$3.56 JMD 562

$3.62 $3.62

-1.66%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.04 JMD 164

$3.50 $3.50

-70.29%

Eggs

$3.50 JMD 552

$4.45 $4.45

-21.35%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.40 JMD 1,798

$13.18 $13.18

-13.51%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.35 JMD 1,001

$13.94 $13.94

-54.45%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.37 JMD 1,477

$16.46 $16.46

-43.07%

Apples (1kg)

$6.08 JMD 959

$4.73 $4.73

28.54%

Banana (1kg)

$3.98 JMD 628

$1.50 $1.50

165.33%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.93 JMD 463

$4.64 $4.64

-36.85%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.00 JMD 474

$4.52 $4.52

-33.63%

Potato (1kg)

$3.16 JMD 499

$2.55 $2.55

23.92%

Onion (1kg)

$2.62 JMD 413

$2.39 $2.39

9.62%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.60 JMD 252

$1.84 $1.84

-13.04%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.29 JMD 203

$2.13 $2.13

-39.44%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$9.67 JMD 1,524

$10.05 $10.05

-3.78%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.19 JMD 1,765

$14.88 $14.88

-24.80%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.75 JMD 434

$2.82 $2.82

-2.48%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.25 JMD 356

$3.29 $3.29

-31.61%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.21 JMD 348

$1.23 $1.23

79.67%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$50.8 JMD 8,003

$41.43 $41.43

22.50%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.96 JMD 152

$2.68 $2.68

-64.18%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.21 JMD 506

$1.63 $1.63

96.93%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.40 JMD 1,009

$35.20 $35.20

-81.82%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.27 JMD 200

$0.98 $0.98

29.59%

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

$44.7K JMD 7.0M

$34.4K $34.4K

29.94%

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

$33.2K JMD 5.2M

$26.8K $26.8K

23.63%

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

$157 JMD 24.8K

$252 $252

-37.62%

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

$28.95 JMD 4,565

$59.8 $59.8

-51.62%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$52.5 JMD 8,279

$69.7 $69.7

-24.62%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$60.5 JMD 9,533

$60.4 $60.4

0.15%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.14 $18.14

Cinema Ticket

$12.98 JMD 2,047

$13.75 $13.75

-5.60%

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

$285 JMD 44.9K

$1,458 $1,458

-80.47%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,124 JMD 492.5K

$26.6K $26.6K

-88.25%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$23.32 JMD 3,677

$52.6 $52.6

-55.70%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$31.64 JMD 4,989

$45.76 $45.76

-30.86%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$77.5 JMD 12.2K

$85.5 $85.5

-9.28%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$95.9 JMD 15.1K

$106 $106

-9.35%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$321 JMD 50.6K

$2,195 $2,195

-85.38%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$220 JMD 34.7K

$1,269 $1,269

-82.64%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$666 JMD 105.0K

$4,000 $4,000

-83.35%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$589 JMD 92.8K

$2,406 $2,406

-75.54%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,530 JMD 1.2M

$7,381 $7,381

2.02%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,830 JMD 919.4K

$2,964 $2,964

96.68%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,288 JMD 203.1K

$5,043 $5,043

-74.46%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

9.45

6.82

38.56%

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

Last update for Portmore: November 1, 2026

Last update for Austin, TX: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Portmore

$336 26.8%

Austin, TX

$407 15.2% 21.1% $71

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Portmore

$239 19%

Austin, TX

$382 14.2% 59.8% $143

Accommodation & Living

Portmore

$220 17.6%

Austin, TX

$1.3K 47.2% 476% $1K

Eating Out

Portmore

$195 15.5%

Austin, TX

$356 13.2% 83% $162

Clothing & Footwear

Portmore

$103 8.2%

Austin, TX

$130 4.9% 26.8% $28

Sport & Entertainment

Portmore

$86 6.9%

Austin, TX

$88 3.3% 1.7% $1.5

Getting Around

Portmore

$77 6.1%

Austin, TX

$57 2.1% 25.3% $19

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $321 in Portmore and $2,195 in Austin, TX. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Austin, TX pays about 3.9 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $63 in Portmore vs $88 in Austin, TX for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $336 vs $407 per month, with Portmore cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇯🇲 Portmore

🇺🇸 Austin, TX

🕒 Local time

02:12 2:12 AM

01:12 1:12 AM

1 h behind Portmore

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

170,000

974,447

💱 Currency

Jamaican Dollar JMD $

United States Dollar USD $

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 JMD = 6.34 USD

1,000 JMD = 5.65 EUR

1 USD = 0.891 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

USD, EUR to JMD – Jamaican Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇯🇲 Jamaican Dollar ($)

Jamaican Dollar exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 158 JMD (1,000 JMD = 6.34 USD). 1 EUR = 177 JMD (1,000 JMD = 5.65 EUR).

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

USD to JMD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Portmore Austin, TX 2,510 km ≈ 3 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Portmore
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

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

Portmore wins on cost – living expenses run 53% lower than in Austin, TX. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Portmore the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 74% lower in Portmore. 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: $321 in Portmore 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 $1,256 per month in Portmore versus $2,689 in Austin, TX – Portmore is about 53% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

A monthly transit pass in Austin, TX runs roughly 18% less than in Portmore. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

Both cities are expensive relative to $1,000. Portmore is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

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