Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Zanzibar and Austin, TX

For one person, living is cheaper in Zanzibar: $577 a month against $2,704 in Austin, TX, rent and utilities included – about $25,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

28

Cost of Living Index in Zanzibar
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Zanzibar Living Index
129

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

Jump to prices

Zanzibar

🇹🇿 Tanzania

$577

/mo nomad

Austin, TX

🇺🇸 United States

$2,704

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $577 in Zanzibar versus $2,704 in Austin, TX.

Zanzibar $577
Austin, TX $2,704

Estimated couple costs with rent: $857 in Zanzibar versus $4,133 in Austin, TX.

Zanzibar $857
Austin, TX $4,133

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,137 in Zanzibar versus $5,562 in Austin, TX.

Zanzibar $1,137
Austin, TX $5,562

Living in Zanzibar costs roughly 79% less than in Austin, TX, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Zanzibar is 57% below, Austin, TX is 102% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.78 TZS 12.5K

$20.22 $20.22

-76.36%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$21.74 TZS 57.0K

$85.0 $85.0

-74.43%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.54 TZS 14.5K

$12.35 $12.35

-55.14%

Cappuccino

$2.21 TZS 5,810

$5.47 $5.47

-59.60%

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

$0.60 TZS 1,568

$3.82 $3.82

-84.29%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.33 TZS 874

$2.50 $2.50

-86.80%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.91 TZS 4,999

$8.06 $8.06

-76.30%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.72 TZS 7,135

$8.99 $8.99

-69.74%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.04 TZS 5,357

$1.13 $1.13

80.53%

White Bread (500g)

$0.72 TZS 1,902

$3.78 $3.78

-80.95%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.83 TZS 2,185

$3.25 $3.25

-74.46%

Eggs

$2.68 TZS 7,044

$4.14 $4.14

-35.27%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.54 TZS 19.8K

$13.08 $13.08

-42.35%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.21 TZS 5,803

$14.31 $14.31

-84.56%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.12 TZS 16.1K

$15.96 $15.96

-61.65%

Apples (1kg)

$2.86 TZS 7,493

$4.38 $4.38

-34.70%

Banana (1kg)

$1.11 TZS 2,918

$1.45 $1.45

-23.45%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.75 TZS 1,967

$4.54 $4.54

-83.48%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.59 TZS 1,556

$4.19 $4.19

-85.92%

Potato (1kg)

$0.98 TZS 2,581

$2.63 $2.63

-62.74%

Onion (1kg)

$1.48 TZS 3,871

$2.36 $2.36

-37.29%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.75 TZS 1,960

$1.76 $1.76

-57.39%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.49 TZS 1,283

$2.16 $2.16

-77.31%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.06 TZS 5,403

$9.81 $9.81

-79.00%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.28 TZS 24.4K

$14.72 $14.72

-36.96%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.54 TZS 4,043

$2.78 $2.78

-44.60%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.31 TZS 3,428

$3.48 $3.48

-62.36%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.31 TZS 817

$1.49 $1.49

-79.19%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$40.51 $40.51

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.70 TZS 9,701

$2.67 $2.67

38.58%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.79 TZS 2,073

$1.58 $1.58

-50.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.62 TZS 6,862

$35.29 $35.29

-92.58%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.27 TZS 3,339

$0.99 $0.99

28.28%

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

$35.8K $35.8K

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

$48.8K TZS 128.0M

$27.2K $27.2K

79.56%

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

$73.3 TZS 192.4K

$219 $219

-66.56%

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

$11.35 TZS 29.8K

$58.0 $58.0

-80.43%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$49.97 TZS 131.1K

$68.4 $68.4

-26.90%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$29.66 TZS 77.8K

$57.9 $57.9

-48.77%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$14.82 $14.82

Cinema Ticket

$9.71 TZS 25.5K

$14.13 $14.13

-31.28%

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

$1,509 $1,509

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$21.5K $21.5K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$12.93 TZS 33.9K

$51.7 $51.7

-74.97%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$17.28 TZS 45.3K

$44.05 $44.05

-60.77%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$15.25 TZS 40.0K

$85.1 $85.1

-82.08%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$13.08 TZS 34.3K

$105 $105

-87.58%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$149 TZS 389.9K

$1,932 $1,932

-92.31%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$99.0 TZS 259.8K

$1,272 $1,272

-92.22%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$201 TZS 528.4K

$3,670 $3,670

-94.51%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$150 TZS 393.4K

$2,525 $2,525

-94.06%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$37.6K TZS 98.6M

$7,617 $7,617

393.31%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$11.5K TZS 30.1M

$3,199 $3,199

258.20%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$313 TZS 820.4K

$5,105 $5,105

-93.88%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.79

47.28%

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

Last update for Zanzibar: 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

Zanzibar

$164 28.2%

Austin, TX

$403 15.3% 145% $239

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Zanzibar

$135 23.1%

Austin, TX

$346 13.1% 157% $211

Eating Out

Zanzibar

$100 17.2%

Austin, TX

$348 13.2% 248% $248

Accommodation & Living

Zanzibar

$99 17%

Austin, TX

$1.3K 48.2% 1185% $1.2K

Sport & Entertainment

Zanzibar

$49 8.4%

Austin, TX

$86 3.3% 75.6% $37

Clothing & Footwear

Zanzibar

$26 4.5%

Austin, TX

$129 4.9% 389% $102

Getting Around

Zanzibar

$8.9 * 1.5%

Austin, TX

$57 2.2% 541% $48

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 $149 in Zanzibar and $1,932 in Austin, TX. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Austin, TX pays 1533% 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: $22.00 in Zanzibar vs $85.0 in Austin, TX for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $164 vs $403 per month, with Zanzibar cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇹🇿 Zanzibar

🇺🇸 Austin, TX

🕒 Local time

14:27 2:27 PM

06:27 6:27 AM

8 h behind Zanzibar

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

709,809

974,447

💱 Currency

Tanzanian Shilling TZS Sh

United States Dollar USD $

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 TZS = 3.81 USD

10,000 TZS = 3.4 EUR

1 USD = 0.892 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

USD, EUR to TZS – Tanzanian Shilling Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇿 Tanzanian Shilling (Sh)

Tanzanian Shilling exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 2,624 TZS (10,000 TZS = 3.81 USD). 1 EUR = 2,940 TZS (10,000 TZS = 3.4 EUR).

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

USD to TZS in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Zanzibar Austin, TX 14,790 km ≈ 19 h nonstop flight

From you

Zanzibar
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

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

Zanzibar wins on cost – living expenses run 369% lower than in Austin, TX. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Zanzibar the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 1533% 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: $149 in Zanzibar 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 $577 per month in Zanzibar versus $2,704 in Austin, TX – a 369% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

Supermarket bills run roughly 145% higher in Austin, TX. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $577 in Zanzibar versus $2,704 in Austin, TX, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Zanzibar but tight or insufficient in Austin, TX. The gap between the two cities makes Zanzibar 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 Zanzibar gentler on the wallet – expenses run 369% less than in Austin, TX. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.