Austin Cost of Living (2026)
Austin runs roughly 10% above national-average cost of living — the lowest among US tech-hub metros. Texas charges no state income tax, the major draw that pulled Tesla, Oracle, Samsung's $17B chip fab, AMD, and Meta to expand here post-2020. Median home prices ran up sharply 2020-2022 then partially stabilized, leaving Austin at $560K median home and $1,750/mo median 1BR rent. The major offsetting cost is property tax — Travis County's 1.97% effective rate is among the highest nationally, so absolute property tax bills run higher than many higher-cost-of-living metros. Car-dependent layout means transportation is a meaningful budget line.
Last reviewed: May 8, 2026 · Reviewed by ProSalaryTax tax research team
Austin 2026 Snapshot
Cost of Living Index
110
national baseline = 100
Median Home Price
$560K
Median 1BR Rent
$1,750/mo
State Income Tax
0%
TL;DR — 30-second version
- 1.Cost of living index: 110. Austin runs 10% above national baseline. Housing post-2020 surge has stabilized; daily expenses run roughly at national average.
- 2.Median home: $560K (down from $620K peak in 2022). Median 1BR rent: $1,750/mo downtown/East Austin, $1,400-$1,600/mo in outer neighborhoods. Suburbs $450K-$700K (Cedar Park, Round Rock, Pflugerville).
- 3.Texas state income tax: 0%. The major financial draw. Combined federal + FICA only on wages. Texas property tax (1.97% Travis County) and sales tax (8.25% combined) are the offsetting state-level revenue mechanisms.
- 4.Transportation: Austin is car-dependent. CapMetro covers downtown reasonably but most residents need a car — $6,000-$8,000/yr per car including insurance, fuel, maintenance, parking. Gas $3.05/gal (cheap by national standards).
- 5.Salary needed for comfortable single living: $70,000-$85,000 gross. Family of four comfortable benchmark: $130,000-$160,000 combined gross including childcare ($1,800-$2,400/mo per child for full-time daycare).
Take-Home Pay in Austin
| Salary | Net Take-Home | Real Value (COL adj) |
|---|---|---|
| $50,000 | $42,355 | $38,505 |
| $75,000 | $61,593 | $55,993 |
| $100,000 | $79,180 | $71,982 |
| $150,000 | $113,791 | $103,446 |
| $200,000 | $148,927 | $135,388 |
Net pay: single filer, standard deduction, no 401(k)/HSA. "Real Value" adjusts take-home by Austin's cost-of-living index (110) so $100K nets the equivalent purchasing power of "Real Value" in a national-average city. 2026 tax year.
Housing in Austin
Austin housing surged 2020-2022 driven by tech-relocation demand (Tesla HQ 2021, Oracle 2020, plus thousands of remote-flexible tech workers from California). Median home prices peaked around $620K in 2022 and have moderated to ~$560K in 2026 as rate-sensitive demand cooled and new construction caught up. Median 1BR rent: $1,750/mo in downtown Austin and East Austin (the gentrified hot zone), $1,400-$1,600/mo in outer neighborhoods (North Austin, South Lamar, Riverside) where most working professionals end up.
Suburban Austin offers the most house-for-the-money in the metro. Cedar Park, Round Rock, Pflugerville, Leander, and Buda all have median home prices in the $450K-$700K range with strong public schools (Round Rock ISD and Leander ISD specifically rank in Texas's top tier). The trade-off is commute time — without a true rapid-transit alternative, Austin's I-35 and Mopac corridors run severely congested 7-9am and 4-7pm, adding 30-60 min to typical suburb-to-downtown trips.
Travis County property tax effective rate of 1.97% is among the highest in the country — Texas funds schools and county services through property tax in lieu of income tax. On a $560K Austin home: $11,030/yr in property tax. Texas caps annual taxable-value increases at 10%/yr on homestead-protected primary residences, providing some buffer against runaway assessments during rapid appreciation, but the headline rate stays high.
Homeowner insurance in Austin runs ~$2,200/yr — moderate. Texas insurance markets have firmed post-2017 hail storms but Austin's distance from the Gulf coast keeps premiums below Houston ($3,200) or Dallas ($1,950 with severe-weather adjustment). Hail is the main recurring claim driver; Hurricane risk is minimal at Austin's inland location.
Median 1BR Rent
Downtown / East Austin: $1,750/mo. Outer neighborhoods (North Austin, South Lamar, Riverside): $1,400-$1,600/mo. Suburban Cedar Park / Round Rock: $1,200-$1,500/mo.
Median Home Price
Austin metro $560K. Top-tier school suburbs (Westlake, Eanes ISD): $1.2M-$2.5M. Cedar Park / Round Rock / Pflugerville: $450K-$700K with strong schools.
Property Tax (Effective)
Travis County 1.97% — among the highest in the country. Williamson County (Round Rock area) ~2.1%. Texas homestead exemption caps taxable-value growth at 10%/yr on primary residences.
Homeowner Insurance
Austin ~$2,200/yr. Hail is the main recurring claim driver. Insurance markets stable post-2017 storms; not subject to the carrier-availability crisis affecting Florida or California wildfire zones.
Renter's Reality
Austin rental market loosened 2023-2024 as new construction came online. Vacancy rates rose to 8-10% in some submarkets, giving renters more leverage on price and concessions than 2022.
Buying Math
On $560K Austin home: ~$3,400/mo P+I at current rates + $920/mo property tax + $185/mo insurance = $4,505/mo total housing cost. Compare to $1,750/mo median rent — buying costs roughly 2.6x renting at median.
Daily Expenses in Austin
Groceries
BLS regional CPI runs ~104 for Austin groceries (4% above national). H-E-B is the dominant Texas chain, generally cheaper than national peers. Family of 4 weekly grocery: $180-$240 at H-E-B; Whole Foods 25-35% higher.
Restaurants
$12-$16 lunch, $20-$35 dinner mid-tier. Austin's restaurant scene has moved upmarket significantly post-2018 (multiple James Beard recognition); BBQ and Tex-Mex still anchor the value tier. Downtown and East Austin run 25-35% above neighborhood averages.
Transportation
CapMetro $41/mo unlimited but covers limited geography; most Austin residents need a car. Per car: $6,000-$8,000/yr (insurance ~$1,950 + fuel ~$1,800 at $3.05/gal × 12K mi/12 mpg + maintenance/registration ~$2,000-$4,000). Parking downtown $20-$35/day.
Utilities
Austin Energy electric: $130-$220/mo summer (June-September AC peak), $80-$120/mo winter. Natural gas heating modest. Water + trash + internet add ~$150-$220/mo. Annual: ~$2,400-$3,400.
Auto Insurance
Travis County average $1,950/yr — moderate. Texas's overall rate environment is mid-tier; Houston runs higher due to severe-weather frequency, Austin lower than Dallas due to less hail exposure.
Healthcare
Austin's healthcare scene has grown rapidly with population — Ascension Seton, St. David's, Dell Medical (UT Austin) anchor major providers. Out-of-pocket healthcare ~$1,500-$2,800/yr per family member at typical employer plans. Texas's Medicaid expansion gap means uninsured rates are higher than peer states.
What Salary Do You Need to Live in Austin?
Single renter, comfortable urban living: $70,000-$85,000 gross. Texas's 0% state income tax is a meaningful advantage at this income level — federal income tax (~$10,000) + FICA (~$5,500) takes the bite, but no state tax means take-home runs ~$54,000-$68,000 net. Apply 50/30/20: rent ($1,750/mo = $21,000/yr) + utilities + groceries + car + transit fits comfortably in the 50% needs allocation at $80K. The Austin housing market's softening since 2022 makes this tier increasingly workable.
Family of four, dual-income, comfortable suburban living: $130,000-$160,000 combined gross. Suburban Austin (Cedar Park, Round Rock, Pflugerville) offers $450K-$700K homes with strong schools — a $5,500-$7,500 mortgage + property tax + insurance combined. Childcare runs $1,800-$2,400/mo per child for full-time daycare in good Austin-area programs (significantly cheaper than Boston's $2,500-$3,500 but still meaningful). The Texas no-income-tax advantage compounds at higher incomes — a $150K combined household saves ~$8,500/yr versus the same income in Massachusetts or California.
Retirement, single or couple, no mortgage: $45,000-$65,000/yr from Social Security + retirement portfolio is workable in Austin. Texas exempts ALL retirement income (no state tax). Property tax remains the biggest concern for retirees — a paid-off Austin home running $4,000-$8,000/yr in property tax alone, depending on appraised value. Texas has a senior homestead exemption that helps, plus an age-65 freeze on school district property taxes that locks in the assessment going forward. Texas's no-estate-tax structure is favorable for high-net-worth retirees.
Austin Neighborhood Guide
Six neighborhoods spanning the rent and lifestyle spectrum — from downtown high-rise to suburban family. All within a 30-45 minute drive of central Austin (longer at peak commute).
Downtown / Rainey Street
$2,200-$3,500/mo · 1BR
High-rise apartment buildings, walkable to Lady Bird Lake trail, restaurants, music venues. Younger professional crowd. Rent at the top of Austin's range; corresponding amenity premium.
East Austin / Mueller
$1,700-$2,200/mo · 1BR
Gentrified hot zone over the last decade — restaurants, breweries, indie venues. Mueller is a planned mixed-use development (former airport site) with parks and walkability. East Austin proper is more eclectic.
South Lamar / Bouldin
$1,600-$2,000/mo · 1BR
Just south of the river, walkable to Zilker Park and Barton Springs. Indie shops, food trailers, mid-century homes. Quieter than East Austin but well-amenitied.
North Austin / Domain
$1,400-$1,800/mo · 1BR
Tech-employer adjacent (Apple campus, IBM, Indeed HQ). The Domain is a major shopping/dining district. Higher density of young professionals working in tech.
Cedar Park / Leander (Suburban)
$1,250-$1,600/mo · 1BR · Single-family $475K-$650K
Family-oriented suburbs north of Austin. Leander ISD ranks in Texas top tier. Commute to downtown 35-50 min driving, 45-60 min on I-35. New construction common.
Round Rock / Pflugerville (Suburban)
$1,200-$1,500/mo · 1BR · Single-family $440K-$600K
Northeast suburbs, Round Rock ISD strong public schools, Dell HQ (Round Rock). Pflugerville more affordable; both family-oriented with new construction.
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Calculate bonusAustin Compared to Peer Metros
vs San Francisco →
Austin runs roughly 44% cheaper. Median home: SF $1.45M vs Austin $560K. Median 1BR rent: SF $3,400/mo vs Austin $1,750/mo. CA top tax rate 13.3% vs TX 0%. Austin's tech ecosystem now competes for non-frontier-AI roles; SF retains advantage for OpenAI/Anthropic-type frontier research.
vs Seattle →
Austin runs ~33% cheaper. Both metros 0% state income tax on wages, but Seattle adds 7% capital gains tax above $270K LTCG plus 10-20% estate tax above $2.193M. Austin wins on cost; Seattle wins on big-tech HQ density (Amazon, Microsoft).
vs Boston →
Austin runs ~24% cheaper than Boston. Median rent $1,750 vs $2,800. Income tax: TX 0% vs MA 5% + 4% surtax above $1.083M. Austin wins on take-home, Boston wins on biotech career, transit, and walkable urbanism.
Living in Austin: The Honest Verdict
Austin is the most-desired tech-hub metro at the lowest cost of living among major US tech employers. The Texas no-income-tax structure plus moderate cost of living (only 10% above national) plus the ongoing tech employer expansion (Tesla, Oracle, Samsung's $17B fab, AMD, Meta) make it a compelling destination for portable-employment professionals. The big trade-off is car dependence — Austin has no real rapid transit, I-35 traffic is genuinely punishing, and the sprawl required to access affordable suburbs adds 45-90 min/day to many commutes.
Single highest-leverage move: factor property tax aggressively into the buy-vs-rent decision. Travis County's 1.97% effective rate plus post-2020 appreciation means many Austin homeowners now pay $10,000-$25,000/yr in property tax alone — often the largest annual housing line item after the mortgage itself. Renting longer than you'd otherwise consider can be the right move if you're not certain about a 7-10 year Austin commitment. The homestead 10%/yr cap on taxable-value growth helps long-tenured owners but offers nothing to new buyers in a hot market.
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