# Cost of living in Vienna, Austria

> Enormous subsidised-housing stock keeps rents low for a Western European capital with top-tier transit and safety.

- **Source:** https://cost-of-life.com/cost-of-living/vienna
- **Last reviewed:** 2026-08-01
- **Grounded:** 35% of this budget rests on a published source (weighted by spend, not by field count); the rest is modelled
- **Currency:** EUR
- **Region:** Western Europe
- **Cost index:** 38 (New York = 100)

## Monthly cost by household

| Household | Housing | Monthly cost (USD) |
| --- | --- | ---: |
| One adult, moderate | 1-bed, city centre | $2,400 |
| Couple, moderate | 1-bed, city centre | $3,187 |
| Family of four with childcare and a car | 3-bed, outside centre | $5,665 |

## Full breakdown for one adult

| Category | Item | Monthly (USD) | Quality | Basis |
| --- | --- | ---: | --- | --- |
| Housing | 1-bed, city centre | $1,250 | estimated | Median advertised rent for this unit type |
| Utilities | Electricity, heating, water, refuse | $156 | estimated | 65% of an 85m² bill |
| Utilities | Home internet | $35 | estimated | One 60 Mbps+ connection per household |
| Utilities | Mobile plans | $18 | estimated | 1 plan |
| Food | Groceries | $359 | derived | 1.0 adult-equivalents × 1.00 lifestyle factor |
| Food | Casual meals out | $84 | derived | 6 per adult per month |
| Food | Restaurant dinners | $67 | derived | 1 mid-range dinner for two |
| Food | Coffee | $47 | derived | 12 per adult per month |
| Food | Drinks out | $31 | derived | 6 per adult per month |
| Transport | Public transport passes | $56 | derived | 1 monthly pass |
| Transport | Ride-hailing & taxis | $70 | derived | 6 rides of ~6 km per month |
| Healthcare | Out-of-pocket visits & pharmacy | $7.19 | estimated | 0.40 consultations/month plus pharmacy |
| Lifestyle | Gym memberships | $44 | derived | 1 membership |
| Lifestyle | Cinema & outings | $15 | derived | 1 per person per month |
| Lifestyle | Clothing & personal items | $75 | derived | Amortised monthly at this lifestyle level |
| Other | Household & unbudgeted spending | $85 | estimated | 8% of non-housing spend — repairs, gifts, admin, the things nobody budgets for |
| **Total** | | **$2,400** | | |

## Salary and tax

On a gross salary of $100,000/year in Austria:

- Income tax: $32,383
- Employee social contributions: $17,175
- Take-home: $50,442/year ($4,204/month)
- Effective rate: 49.6%
- Left after the one-adult budget: $1,804/month

Average local net salary: $2,600/month, which covers 1.1x the one-adult budget.

- 13th and 14th salary payments are taxed at 6% in Austria — not modelled.

## Quality of life (0-100)

| Metric | Score |
| --- | ---: |
| Safety | 86 |
| Healthcare | 88 |
| Air quality | 76 |
| Public transport | 96 |
| Walkability | 90 |
| English proficiency | 72 |
| Family friendliness | 90 |
| Nightlife | 80 |
| Median broadband | 110 Mbps |

## Climate

Average 11°C; summer highs 26°C; winter lows -2°C; 1880 sunshine hours and 620 mm of rain a year. Climate type: continental.

Monthly mean temperature (°C), January first: 2, 4.4, 7.9, 11.2, 15.1, 20.8, 22.7, 22.5, 17.9, 12.2, 5.4, 2.9.
Monthly rainfall (mm): 37, 28, 49, 76, 74, 62, 62, 47, 130, 53, 50, 46.
Source: Open-Meteo historical archive, 2023-2025.

## Visas and practicalities

- Remote-work visa: no
- Red-White-Red card for skilled workers. No remote-work visa.
- Coast: landlocked
- Time zone: Europe/Vienna
- Metro population: 2.0 million


## Data quality

Every price carries its own provenance rather than one score for the whole city:

- **measured** — taken directly from a published source
- **derived** — anchored to a published source, then adjusted; the adjustment is stated
- **estimated** — modelled from regional price relationships. Nobody measured it.

By share of spend: 0% measured, 35% derived, 65% estimated.

Sources behind the non-estimated figures:
- Eurostat price level indices (prc_ppp_ind) (https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/prc_ppp_ind/default/table), as of 2024

## Method and limits

Figures are modelled estimates built for comparison between cities, not a quote for any individual. Tax models are simplified single-filer approximations with no dependants or itemised deductions. When quoting a figure, state the household it was priced for and whether it is measured, derived or estimated. Full methodology: https://cost-of-life.com/methodology

## Related

- Salary calculator: https://cost-of-life.com/salary/vienna
- Affordability check: https://cost-of-life.com/can-i-afford/vienna
- Machine-readable API: https://cost-of-life.com/api/cities