Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Santo Domingo and Austin, TX

For one person, living is cheaper in Santo Domingo: $1,122 a month against $2,704 in Austin, TX, rent and utilities included – about $19,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

54

Cost of Living Index in Santo Domingo
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Santo Domingo Living Index
129

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

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Santo Domingo

🇩🇴 Dominican Republic

$1,122

/mo nomad

Austin, TX

🇺🇸 United States

$2,704

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,122 in Santo Domingo versus $2,704 in Austin, TX.

Santo Domingo $1,122
Austin, TX $2,704

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,761 in Santo Domingo versus $4,133 in Austin, TX.

Santo Domingo $1,761
Austin, TX $4,133

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,401 in Santo Domingo versus $5,562 in Austin, TX.

Santo Domingo $2,401
Austin, TX $5,562

Living in Santo Domingo costs roughly 59% less than in Austin, TX, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Santo Domingo is 16% below, Austin, TX is 102% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.19 DOP 622

$20.22 $20.22

-49.60%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$50.5 DOP 3,082

$85.0 $85.0

-40.59%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.79 DOP 475

$12.35 $12.35

-36.92%

Cappuccino

$2.23 DOP 136

$5.47 $5.47

-59.23%

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

$1.02 DOP 62.5

$3.82 $3.82

-73.30%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.54 DOP 33.14

$2.50 $2.50

-78.40%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.55 DOP 156

$8.06 $8.06

-68.36%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.30 DOP 201

$8.99 $8.99

-63.29%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.33 DOP 81.1

$1.13 $1.13

17.70%

White Bread (500g)

$1.50 DOP 91.5

$3.78 $3.78

-60.32%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.63 DOP 99.3

$3.25 $3.25

-49.85%

Eggs

$2.36 DOP 144

$4.14 $4.14

-43.00%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.40 DOP 451

$13.08 $13.08

-43.43%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.59 DOP 341

$14.31 $14.31

-60.94%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.71 DOP 409

$15.96 $15.96

-57.96%

Apples (1kg)

$3.19 DOP 194

$4.38 $4.38

-27.17%

Banana (1kg)

$0.85 DOP 51.8

$1.45 $1.45

-41.38%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.76 DOP 168

$4.54 $4.54

-39.21%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.86 DOP 114

$4.19 $4.19

-55.61%

Potato (1kg)

$2.07 DOP 127

$2.63 $2.63

-21.29%

Onion (1kg)

$2.25 DOP 137

$2.36 $2.36

-4.66%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.03 DOP 63.1

$1.76 $1.76

-41.48%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.97 DOP 59.0

$2.16 $2.16

-55.09%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.19 DOP 317

$9.81 $9.81

-47.09%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.24 DOP 625

$14.72 $14.72

-30.43%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.53 DOP 154

$2.78 $2.78

-8.99%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.97 DOP 181

$3.48 $3.48

-14.66%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.60 DOP 36.59

$1.49 $1.49

-59.73%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$18.04 DOP 1,101

$40.51 $40.51

-55.47%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.36 DOP 205

$2.67 $2.67

25.84%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.21 DOP 135

$1.58 $1.58

39.87%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.71 DOP 348

$35.29 $35.29

-83.82%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.43 DOP 87.4

$0.99 $0.99

44.44%

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

$23.4K DOP 1.4M

$35.8K $35.8K

-34.72%

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

$34.2K DOP 2.1M

$27.2K $27.2K

25.68%

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

$93.8 DOP 5,720

$219 $219

-57.24%

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

$31.81 DOP 1,940

$58.0 $58.0

-45.15%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$37.01 DOP 2,258

$68.4 $68.4

-45.86%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$29.96 DOP 1,828

$57.9 $57.9

-48.26%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.22 DOP 1,477

$14.82 $14.82

63.43%

Cinema Ticket

$7.30 DOP 445

$14.13 $14.13

-48.34%

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

$256 DOP 15.6K

$1,509 $1,509

-83.06%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,297 DOP 445.1K

$21.5K $21.5K

-65.99%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$45.66 DOP 2,785

$51.7 $51.7

-11.61%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$46.81 DOP 2,855

$44.05 $44.05

6.27%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$88.1 DOP 5,373

$85.1 $85.1

3.51%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$126 DOP 7,691

$105 $105

19.72%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$712 DOP 43.4K

$1,932 $1,932

-63.16%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$348 DOP 21.2K

$1,272 $1,272

-72.63%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,451 DOP 88.5K

$3,670 $3,670

-60.45%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$622 DOP 38.0K

$2,525 $2,525

-75.35%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,205 DOP 134.5K

$7,617 $7,617

-71.06%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,203 DOP 73.4K

$3,199 $3,199

-62.40%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$590 DOP 36.0K

$5,105 $5,105

-88.44%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

13.56

6.79

99.71%

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

Last update for Santo Domingo: 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

Santo Domingo

$348 31.5%

Austin, TX

$1.3K 48.2% 265% $924

Groceries & Markets

Santo Domingo

$221 20%

Austin, TX

$403 15.3% 81.9% $181

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Santo Domingo

$163 14.7%

Austin, TX

$346 13.1% 113% $183

Eating Out

Santo Domingo

$157 14.2%

Austin, TX

$348 13.2% 121% $191

Clothing & Footwear

Santo Domingo

$138 12.5%

Austin, TX

$129 4.9% 6.7% $9.2

Sport & Entertainment

Santo Domingo

$45 4%

Austin, TX

$86 3.3% 93.3% $42

Getting Around

Santo Domingo

$35 3.2%

Austin, TX

$57 2.2% 63.7% $22

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $712 in Santo Domingo and $1,932 in Austin, TX. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Austin, TX pays 765% 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: $51.0 in Santo Domingo vs $85.0 in Austin, TX for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $221 vs $403 per month, with Santo Domingo cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇩🇴 Santo Domingo

🇺🇸 Austin, TX

🕒 Local time

22:00 10:00 PM

21:00 9:00 PM

1 h behind Santo Domingo

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

965,040 Capital

974,447

💱 Currency

Dominican Peso DOP $

United States Dollar USD $

📈 Exchange rate

100 DOP = 1.64 USD

100 DOP = 1.46 EUR

1 USD = 0.892 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

USD, EUR to DOP – Dominican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇩🇴 Dominican Peso ($)

Dominican Peso exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 61 DOP (100 DOP = 1.64 USD). 1 EUR = 68.42 DOP (100 DOP = 1.46 EUR).

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

USD to DOP in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Santo Domingo Austin, TX 3,090 km ≈ 4 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Santo Domingo
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

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

Santo Domingo wins on cost – living expenses run 141% lower than in Austin, TX. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Santo Domingo the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 765% 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: $712 in Santo Domingo 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 $1,122 per month in Santo Domingo versus $2,704 in Austin, TX – a 141% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Santo Domingo runs roughly 125% less than in Austin, TX. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $1,122 in Santo Domingo versus $2,704 in Austin, TX, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Santo Domingo but tight or insufficient in Austin, TX. The gap between the two cities makes Santo Domingo 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 Santo Domingo gentler on the wallet – expenses run 141% less than in Austin, TX. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.