Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Porto Alegre and Austin, TX

For one person, living is cheaper in Porto Alegre: $990 a month against $2,704 in Austin, TX, rent and utilities included – about $20,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

48

Cost of Living Index in Porto Alegre
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Porto Alegre Living Index
129

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

Jump to prices

Porto Alegre

🇧🇷 Brazil

$990

/mo nomad

Austin, TX

🇺🇸 United States

$2,704

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $990 in Porto Alegre versus $2,704 in Austin, TX.

Porto Alegre $990
Austin, TX $2,704

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,567 in Porto Alegre versus $4,133 in Austin, TX.

Porto Alegre $1,567
Austin, TX $4,133

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,143 in Porto Alegre versus $5,562 in Austin, TX.

Porto Alegre $2,143
Austin, TX $5,562

Living in Porto Alegre costs roughly 63% less than in Austin, TX, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Porto Alegre is 26% below, Austin, TX is 102% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$7.85 R$39.17

$20.22 $20.22

-61.18%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$39.44 R$197

$85.0 $85.0

-53.62%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.16 R$35.72

$12.35 $12.35

-42.02%

Cappuccino

$2.62 R$13.10

$5.47 $5.47

-52.10%

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

$1.39 R$6.96

$3.82 $3.82

-63.61%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.07 R$5.33

$2.50 $2.50

-57.20%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.42 R$12.08

$8.06 $8.06

-69.98%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.93 R$14.64

$8.99 $8.99

-67.41%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.04 R$5.18

$1.13 $1.13

-7.96%

White Bread (500g)

$1.72 R$8.59

$3.78 $3.78

-54.50%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.08 R$5.39

$3.25 $3.25

-66.77%

Eggs

$2.42 R$12.09

$4.14 $4.14

-41.55%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.08 R$50.3

$13.08 $13.08

-22.94%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.81 R$24.02

$14.31 $14.31

-66.39%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.73 R$48.56

$15.96 $15.96

-39.04%

Apples (1kg)

$2.44 R$12.20

$4.38 $4.38

-44.29%

Banana (1kg)

$1.45 R$7.23

$1.45 $1.45

Oranges (1kg)

$1.40 R$6.99

$4.54 $4.54

-69.16%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.66 R$8.28

$4.19 $4.19

-60.38%

Potato (1kg)

$1.21 R$6.04

$2.63 $2.63

-53.99%

Onion (1kg)

$1.08 R$5.41

$2.36 $2.36

-54.24%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.89 R$4.44

$1.76 $1.76

-49.43%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.82 R$4.11

$2.16 $2.16

-62.04%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.46 R$12.28

$9.81 $9.81

-74.92%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.17 R$40.80

$14.72 $14.72

-44.50%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.12 R$5.61

$2.78 $2.78

-59.71%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.16 R$10.77

$3.48 $3.48

-37.93%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.02 R$5.11

$1.49 $1.49

-31.54%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$59.5 R$297

$40.51 $40.51

46.98%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.26 R$6.30

$2.67 $2.67

-52.81%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.79 R$3.94

$1.58 $1.58

-50.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.34 R$41.65

$35.29 $35.29

-76.37%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.34 R$6.70

$0.99 $0.99

35.35%

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

$23.5K R$117.2K

$35.8K $35.8K

-34.45%

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

$34.4K R$171.5K

$27.2K $27.2K

26.42%

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

$77.6 R$387

$219 $219

-64.62%

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

$12.72 R$63.5

$58.0 $58.0

-78.07%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$21.94 R$110

$68.4 $68.4

-67.91%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$29.96 R$150

$57.9 $57.9

-48.26%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$30.96 R$155

$14.82 $14.82

108.91%

Cinema Ticket

$7.41 R$36.98

$14.13 $14.13

-47.56%

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

$568 R$2,837

$1,509 $1,509

-62.34%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$24.1K R$120.3K

$21.5K $21.5K

12.33%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$51.0 R$255

$51.7 $51.7

-1.26%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$59.1 R$295

$44.05 $44.05

34.10%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$103 R$512

$85.1 $85.1

20.48%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$77.9 R$389

$105 $105

-26.00%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$483 R$2,411

$1,932 $1,932

-75.00%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$280 R$1,396

$1,272 $1,272

-78.02%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$816 R$4,072

$3,670 $3,670

-77.77%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$462 R$2,307

$2,525 $2,525

-81.69%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,675 R$8,363

$7,617 $7,617

-78.01%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,302 R$6,499

$3,199 $3,199

-59.30%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$546 R$2,725

$5,105 $5,105

-89.31%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.5

6.79

69.37%

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

Last update for Porto Alegre: October 5, 2026

Last update for Austin, TX: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Porto Alegre

$280 28.4%

Austin, TX

$1.3K 48.2% 355% $993

Groceries & Markets

Porto Alegre

$205 20.9%

Austin, TX

$403 15.3% 96.1% $197

Eating Out

Porto Alegre

$144 14.6%

Austin, TX

$348 13.2% 142% $204

Clothing & Footwear

Porto Alegre

$131 13.3%

Austin, TX

$129 4.9% 1.5% $2

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Porto Alegre

$112 11.4%

Austin, TX

$346 13.1% 208% $233

Getting Around

Porto Alegre

$69 7%

Austin, TX

$57 2.2% 17.2% $12

Sport & Entertainment

Porto Alegre

$45 4.5%

Austin, TX

$86 3.3% 92.5% $41

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $483 in Porto Alegre and $1,932 in Austin, TX. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Austin, TX pays 835% 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: $39.00 in Porto Alegre vs $85.0 in Austin, TX for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $205 vs $403 per month, with Porto Alegre cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇧🇷 Porto Alegre

🇺🇸 Austin, TX

🕒 Local time

00:36 12:36 AM

22:36 10:36 PM

2 h behind Porto Alegre

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,332,833

974,447

💱 Currency

Brazilian Real BRL R$

United States Dollar USD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 BRL = 0.2 USD

1 BRL = 0.179 EUR

1 USD = 0.892 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

USD, EUR to BRL – Brazilian Real Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇧🇷 Brazilian Real (R$)

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 4.99 BRL (1 BRL = 0.2 USD). 1 EUR = 5.6 BRL (1 BRL = 0.179 EUR).

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

USD to BRL in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Porto Alegre Austin, TX 8,320 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Porto Alegre
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

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

Porto Alegre wins on cost – living expenses run 173% lower than in Austin, TX. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Porto Alegre the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 835% 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: $483 in Porto Alegre 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 $990 per month in Porto Alegre versus $2,704 in Austin, TX – a 173% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Porto Alegre runs roughly 47% less than in Austin, TX. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $990 in Porto Alegre versus $2,704 in Austin, TX, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Porto Alegre but tight or insufficient in Austin, TX. The gap between the two cities makes Porto Alegre the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Porto Alegre delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $990 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Porto Alegre hard to pass up.

Expats usually find Porto Alegre gentler on the wallet – expenses run 173% less than in Austin, TX. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.