Cost of living comparison
Illinois is 25.6% cheaper than Boston.
If you lived in Illinois instead of Boston, you would:
pay 21.4% less for restaurants
|
Boston
|
Illinois
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$22.50
|
$17.45
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$12.00
|
$9.57
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.86
|
$2.40
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.56
|
$1.87
|
|
pay 35.6% less for groceries
|
Boston
|
Illinois
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$4.41
|
$2.98
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$10.47
|
$5.17
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$4.84
|
$3.24
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$4.79
|
$2.67
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$6.42
|
$4.72
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$2.59
|
$2.19
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.96
|
$0.62
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$2.83
|
$1.91
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$2.95
|
$1.74
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.72
|
$0.93
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.70
|
$1.12
|
|
pay 4.5% less for transportation
|
Boston
|
Illinois
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$3.58
|
$3.53
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$90.00
|
$77.17
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$30,000.00
|
$31,837.76
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$16.72
|
$15.34
|
|
pay 33.2% less for housing
|
Boston
|
Illinois
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$69.92
|
$66.06
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$3,145.77
|
$1,337.83
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$2,256.09
|
$1,055.94
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$150.95
|
$126.10
|
|
pay 34.7% less for childcare
|
Boston
|
Illinois
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$2,416.67
|
$1,229.51
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$28,000.00
|
$22,314.07
|
|
pay 34.1% less for entertainment and sports
|
Boston
|
Illinois
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$8.00
|
$4.85
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$5.62
|
$4.57
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$13.66
|
$9.28
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$95.56
|
$44.37
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$16.00
|
$11.73
|
|
pay 15.8% less for clothing
|
Boston
|
Illinois
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$58.78
|
$51.00
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$44.64
|
$37.10
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$92.89
|
$87.83
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$155.69
|
$112.76
|
|
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