City comparison
Austin, TX is about 1,000 miles (1,600 km) from Dayton, OH in a straight line. By road, the drive is roughly 1,300 miles, or about 21 hours (about 2 days at 10 h/day) behind the wheel at highway speeds.
Driving distance is a rough estimate (great-circle × 1.25); driving time assumes a 60 mph blended average. Real trips run 10–20% longer with stops.
A direct flight from Austin, TX to Dayton, OH takes about 2 h 1 min, covering roughly 1,000 miles in a straight line. Connecting itineraries with a layover typically add 1–3 hours.
Block-to-block estimate at ~500 mph cruise, including taxi, climb, and descent — what an airline would publish, not pure airborne time.
Austin has a population of 958,202, vs 137,305 in Dayton — about 7.0× larger by population. By land area, Austin covers about 325 sq mi vs 56 sq mi for Dayton.
Population from US Census ACS. Land area from the Census Gazetteer (city proper, excluding inland water).
Cost indices by category, with the US city average (100) marked.
Index: 100 = US city average. Lower is more affordable.
Side-by-side costs, salaries, and sub-category indices.
| Metric | Austin | Dayton | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $1,549/mo | $830/mo | 86.6% higher in Austin |
| Median home value | $461,500 | $86,200 | 435.4% higher in Austin |
| Median household income | $86,556 | $41,443 | 108.9% higher in Austin |
| Groceries index | 94.2 | 93.9 | ≈ equal (Austin slightly higher) |
| Utilities index | 83.2 | 95.1 | 14.3% higher in Dayton |
| Transportation index | 96.6 | 98.8 | 2.2% higher in Dayton |
| Healthcare index | 96.1 | 99.0 | 3.0% higher in Dayton |
How much you'd need to earn in the other city to keep the same standard of living.
If you earn $100,000 in Austin, you'd need $82,164 in Dayton to maintain your standard of living.
Climate, safety, and demographics side by side.
Dayton, OH is about 17.8% cheaper overall than Austin, TX, based on our cost-of-living index. Housing costs are roughly 67% higher in Austin than in Dayton. If you earn $80,000 in Austin, you'd need about $65,731 in Dayton to keep the same standard of living.