Graz

Cost of Living inGraz, Austria

Styria, Austria303KHigh incomeRemote-work friendly

Image credit: Bernd Thaller from Graz, Austria

Purchasing Power vs. United States

Your money goes 1.42x further

Based on GDP per capita (PPP). Austria: $63,788/capita.

How Far Your Money Goes

Prices are 28% lower than the global benchmark (New York City = 100).

Overall
1.4x further
Prices are 28% lower than the global benchmark (New York City = 100).
Rent
5.3x further
Prices are 81% lower than the global benchmark (New York City = 100).
Groceries
1.3x further
Prices are 26% lower than the global benchmark (New York City = 100).
Restaurants
1.4x further
Prices are 27% lower than the global benchmark (New York City = 100).

Income Category

High
World Bank GNI

Happiness

6.9 / 10

#14 globally

GDP per Capita

$63,788
PPP, International $

City Population

303K

Monthly Costs

Rent

1BR City Center$765/mo
1BR Outside Center$701/mo
3BR City Center$1,461/mo
3BR Outside Center$1,218/mo

Food

Cheap Meal$18
Mid-Range (2 people)$88
Milk (1L)$1.72
Eggs (12)$5.20

Transport

Monthly Pass$76
Gasoline (1L)$1.84

Utilities

Basic (85m² apt)$379/mo
Internet (60+ Mbps)$38/mo

Education

Preschool$547/mo
Intl Primary School$5,949/yr

Child Education

Public-school quality + expat access, alongside international and private school cost — the two paths a relocating family weighs.

Public schools

Public-schooling rules are set nationally for Austria; Graz-specific enrollment notes are still being verified.

Excellent public schools

Quality

Excellent public schools

Assessment snapshot: 2022

Expat access

Resident families can use it

conditional

Instruction

German

Language fit is more manageable.

PISA / outcomes

491

Above OECD avg

PISA 2022 · OECD avg ~480

Why this quality rating

Austria has a strong public-school backbone, reliable teaching quality, and solid OECD outcomes.

Why the expat-access rating looks like this

Foreign resident families can usually enroll, but instruction is in German and local catchment rules still matter.

📋 Homeschooling

Legal with annual exams

Homeschooling is legal in Austria. Parents must notify the school district before the school year. Students must pass an annual exam (Externistenprüfung) covering the Austrian curriculum. If the child fails, they must attend school.

Homeschool legality in Austria — check current regulations before committing.

Source: User-curated family relocation research (initial seed) (2026-04-14)

International & private schools

Median tuition
3 schools listed
IB2Other1

Childcare & Domestic Help

Estimate-only country fallback for the family-support costs we track in Austria.

Full-time nanny (5 days)

$2,100

Estimate-only country fallback

Live-in / 24-7 nanny

$4,200

Estimate-only country fallback

Source: curated family relocation research(derived country fallback)

Getting Around

Neighborhood mobility profiles are rolling out city by city.Graz is still missing a verified walkability, transit, airport, and rideshare profile.

Healthcare

System strength, outcome signals, facility coverage, and self-pay visibility in Austria.

Method: country metrics come from public system indicators, facility coverage reflects mapped providers we can inventory, direct pricing only reflects observed self-pay pages, and relative care cost can fall back to broad cost-of-living healthcare indices. Sparse pricing does not imply sparse healthcare availability.

1,336 facilities tracked
Facilities updated 2 months ago

Healthcare system

Strong

Good national coverage, strong doctor availability, and deep nursing capacity support this rating.

Public care

Strong

Broad public coverage, strong public funding, and relatively low patient cost-sharing support this rating.

Private care

Good

A large tracked hospital and clinic network and a clearly private facility base help, but self-pay pricing transparency is still sparse.

UHC coverage

84/100

2023

Physicians

5.51/1k

2023

Hospital beds

6.70/1k

2022

Out of pocket

16%

2024

Outcome signals

Life expectancy

82.0 yrs

2024

Maternal mortality

6/100k

2023

Neonatal mortality

2.2/1k

2024

International patient readiness

Mixed

A visible private hospital base and multiple facilities have websites help, but price transparency is still sparse.

Pricing transparency

Limited

Multiple facilities have crawlable websites help, but published self-pay prices are scarce.

Facility coverage

Doctor: 1,056Dentist: 147Pharmacy: 71Clinic: 24Physiotherapy: 24Hospital: 9Laboratory: 5

Self-pay pricing visibility

No verified self-pay prices are published for the tracked facilities in Austria yet.

This usually reflects low online price transparency rather than a lack of healthcare providers.

Notable facilities

Landeskrankenhaus-Universitätsklinikum Graz
Hospital · Emergency
Website
emergency
Unfallkrankenhaus Steiermark, Standort Graz
Hospital · Emergency
Website
trauma
LKH Graz II Standort West
Hospital · Emergency
Website
emergency
Landeskrankenhaus Graz II
Hospital · Emergency
Website
Militärspital
Hospital · Emergency
LKH Graz II Standort Süd
Hospital · Emergency
emergencyhealthcare:speciality=psychiatryneurology

System metrics: World Bank WDI · Updated 2026-06-01

Safety & Governance

Street Safety

Safety Index73/100
Crime Index28/100

Source: Numbeo where a city row is matched; otherwise World Bank WGI and country-level safety context.

Political Stability

Political Stability+0.88

World Bank WGI scale: -2.5 to +2.5.

Wages by Sector

SectorMedian
Administrative & Support Services
Agriculture & Farming
Arts, Entertainment & Recreation
Construction
Education
Finance & Insurance
Healthcare & Social Work
Hospitality & Food Service
Information & Technology
Manufacturing
Mining & Quarrying
Other Services
Professional & Scientific Services
Public Administration & Defence
Real Estate
Retail & Wholesale Trade
Transport & Logistics
Utilities

2024 annual wages in Graz, Austria · Source: Statistik Austria (region-adjusted)

Price Comparison vs. US

budget hotel
$22.00Estimated39% cheaper
childcare preschool
$547.44Estimated65% cheaper
eggs dozen
$5.20Estimated8% more
gasoline liter
$1.84Estimated79% more
inexpensive meal
$17.70Estimated16% cheaper
internet 60mbps
$38.06Estimated44% cheaper
luxury hotel
$250.00Estimated48% cheaper
milk liter
$1.72Estimated41% more
monthly pass
$76.45Estimated10% more
rent 1br
$765.37Estimated58% cheaper
rent 3br
$1461.17Estimated54% cheaper
utilities basic
$379.33Estimated77% more

Visa Information (US passport)

Short-stay entry

visa freeUp to 90 days

US passport holders can stay up to 90 days without a visa.

Long-Term Visa Programs

12 months

Quick comparison FAQ

Structured from the deltas already shown on this page — no invented facts, no extra data sources.

How far does your money go in Graz compared with the US?

Your money goes about 1.4x further in Graz than in the US, based on the current PPP estimate.

Is Graz cheaper or more expensive overall than New York City?

Graz is cheaper overall than New York City — overall living costs are about 28% cheaper than the global benchmark (New York City) for Graz.

How does rent in Graz compare with New York City?

Rent in Graz is about 81% cheaper than the global benchmark (New York City).

How expensive are groceries and restaurants in Graz?

Groceries in Graz are about 26% cheaper than the global benchmark (New York City), and restaurant prices are about 27% cheaper than the same benchmark.

About Graz

Graz is the capital of Styria in southeastern Austria, the country's second-largest city after Vienna, set on the Mur River where the Alps meet the Pannonian Basin. About 303,000 residents live in a UNESCO-listed historic core surrounded by four universities, a strong automotive R&D cluster centered on Magna Steyr, and a growing software and life-sciences scene. German is the working language, with English common in academic and tech roles. The city is a roughly two-and-a-half-hour rail ride from Vienna and about an hour from the Slovenian border, with a small international airport. Graz suits EU-mobile professionals and academics who want a midsize Austrian city with research density and Alpine access.

Reliable high-speed fiber internet (100+ Mbps common)Cold winters (-5 to 5°C) with moderate snow, pleasant summers (20-25°C)Growing but modest expat/digital nomad communityHighly walkable city center with excellent public transportStrong Austro-Hungarian and modern fusion food sceneLimited but improving nightlife and coworking sceneVery safe with low crime ratesAffordable rent and living costs (~€800-1200 for 1BR apartment