Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Surabaya and Austin, TX

For one person, living is cheaper in Surabaya: $688 a month against $2,704 in Austin, TX, rent and utilities included – about $24,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

33

Cost of Living Index in Surabaya
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Surabaya Living Index
129

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

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Surabaya

🇮🇩 Indonesia

$688

/mo nomad

Austin, TX

🇺🇸 United States

$2,704

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $688 in Surabaya versus $2,704 in Austin, TX.

Surabaya $688
Austin, TX $2,704

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,191 in Surabaya versus $4,133 in Austin, TX.

Surabaya $1,191
Austin, TX $4,133

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,695 in Surabaya versus $5,562 in Austin, TX.

Surabaya $1,695
Austin, TX $5,562

Living in Surabaya costs roughly 75% less than in Austin, TX, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Surabaya is 49% below, Austin, TX is 102% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$1.69 Rp 30.2K

$20.22 $20.22

-91.64%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$11.40 Rp 203.9K

$85.0 $85.0

-86.59%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.05 Rp 54.6K

$12.35 $12.35

-75.30%

Cappuccino

$1.57 Rp 28.0K

$5.47 $5.47

-71.30%

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

$0.61 Rp 10.8K

$3.82 $3.82

-84.03%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.28 Rp 5,026

$2.50 $2.50

-88.80%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.26 Rp 40.5K

$8.06 $8.06

-71.96%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.09 Rp 73.1K

$8.99 $8.99

-54.51%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.22 Rp 21.8K

$1.13 $1.13

7.96%

White Bread (500g)

$1.27 Rp 22.8K

$3.78 $3.78

-66.40%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.84 Rp 15.0K

$3.25 $3.25

-74.15%

Eggs

$1.20 Rp 21.5K

$4.14 $4.14

-71.01%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.66 Rp 136.9K

$13.08 $13.08

-41.44%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.08 Rp 55.0K

$14.31 $14.31

-78.48%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.85 Rp 140.3K

$15.96 $15.96

-50.81%

Apples (1kg)

$2.09 Rp 37.4K

$4.38 $4.38

-52.28%

Banana (1kg)

$1.30 Rp 23.2K

$1.45 $1.45

-10.34%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.82 Rp 32.6K

$4.54 $4.54

-59.91%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.56 Rp 27.8K

$4.19 $4.19

-62.77%

Potato (1kg)

$1.30 Rp 23.3K

$2.63 $2.63

-50.57%

Onion (1kg)

$1.91 Rp 34.2K

$2.36 $2.36

-19.07%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.96 Rp 17.2K

$1.76 $1.76

-45.45%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.43 Rp 7,679

$2.16 $2.16

-80.09%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.94 Rp 34.6K

$9.81 $9.81

-80.22%

Wine (Bottle)

$24.67 Rp 441.1K

$14.72 $14.72

67.60%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.73 Rp 30.9K

$2.78 $2.78

-37.77%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.00 Rp 53.5K

$3.48 $3.48

-13.79%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.32 Rp 5,669

$1.49 $1.49

-78.52%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$40.51 $40.51

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.48 Rp 8,519

$2.67 $2.67

-82.02%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.43 Rp 7,679

$1.58 $1.58

-72.78%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.61 Rp 46.7K

$35.29 $35.29

-92.60%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.83 Rp 14.8K

$0.99 $0.99

-16.16%

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

$25.0K Rp 446.0M

$35.8K $35.8K

-30.31%

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

$32.8K Rp 585.5M

$27.2K $27.2K

20.54%

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

$86.2 Rp 1.5M

$219 $219

-60.71%

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

$4.58 Rp 81.9K

$58.0 $58.0

-92.10%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$19.24 Rp 343.9K

$68.4 $68.4

-71.85%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$17.96 Rp 321.0K

$57.9 $57.9

-68.98%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$6.82 Rp 121.9K

$14.82 $14.82

-53.98%

Cinema Ticket

$2.72 Rp 48.7K

$14.13 $14.13

-80.75%

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

$280 Rp 5.0M

$1,509 $1,509

-81.45%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,557 Rp 170.8M

$21.5K $21.5K

-55.46%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$70.0 Rp 1.3M

$51.7 $51.7

35.50%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.31 Rp 702.6K

$44.05 $44.05

-10.76%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$81.4 Rp 1.5M

$85.1 $85.1

-4.29%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$73.4 Rp 1.3M

$105 $105

-30.27%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$279 Rp 5.0M

$1,932 $1,932

-85.57%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$147 Rp 2.6M

$1,272 $1,272

-88.46%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,247 Rp 22.3M

$3,670 $3,670

-66.02%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$620 Rp 11.1M

$2,525 $2,525

-75.45%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,155 Rp 38.5M

$7,617 $7,617

-71.70%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,047 Rp 18.7M

$3,199 $3,199

-67.27%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$273 Rp 4.9M

$5,105 $5,105

-94.65%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

7.5

6.79

10.46%

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

Last update for Surabaya: October 5, 2026

Last update for Austin, TX: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Surabaya

$209 30.9%

Austin, TX

$403 15.3% 92.7% $194

Accommodation & Living

Surabaya

$147 21.7%

Austin, TX

$1.3K 48.2% 767% $1.1K

Clothing & Footwear

Surabaya

$119 17.6%

Austin, TX

$129 4.9% 8.3% $9.9

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Surabaya

$110 16.3%

Austin, TX

$346 13.1% 214% $236

Eating Out

Surabaya

$65 9.5%

Austin, TX

$348 13.2% 439% $283

Sport & Entertainment

Surabaya

$23 3.5%

Austin, TX

$86 3.3% 268% $63

Getting Around

Surabaya

$3.9 * 0.6%

Austin, TX

$57 2.2% 1366% $53

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 $279 in Surabaya and $1,932 in Austin, TX. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Austin, TX pays 1769% 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: $11.00 in Surabaya vs $85.0 in Austin, TX for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $209 vs $403 per month, with Surabaya cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇮🇩 Surabaya

🇺🇸 Austin, TX

🕒 Local time

09:54 9:54 AM

21:54 9:54 PM

12 h behind Surabaya

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,765,487

974,447

💱 Currency

Indonesian Rupiah IDR Rp

United States Dollar USD $

📈 Exchange rate

100,000 IDR = 5.59 USD

100,000 IDR = 4.99 EUR

1 USD = 0.892 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

USD, EUR to IDR – Indonesian Rupiah Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇮🇩 Indonesian Rupiah (Rp)

Indonesian Rupiah exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 17,875 IDR (100,000 IDR = 5.59 USD). 1 EUR = 20,048 IDR (100,000 IDR = 4.99 EUR).

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

USD to IDR in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Surabaya Austin, TX 15,940 km ≈ 20 h nonstop flight

From you

Surabaya
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

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

Surabaya wins on cost – living expenses run 293% lower than in Austin, TX. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Surabaya the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 1769% 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: $279 in Surabaya versus $1,932 in Austin, TX. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $280 in Surabaya versus $1,509 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 Surabaya – a meal for two runs $11.00 versus $85.0 in Austin, TX. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $688 in Surabaya versus $2,704 in Austin, TX, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Surabaya but tight or insufficient in Austin, TX. The gap between the two cities makes Surabaya 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 Surabaya gentler on the wallet – expenses run 293% less than in Austin, TX. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.