Cost of living comparison
Rome is 8.4% cheaper than Des Moines.
- Restaurants
-
pay 10.8% less in Rome
- Groceries
-
pay 7.0% less in Rome
- Transportation
-
pay 36.1% more in Rome
- Housing
-
pay 4.7% less in Rome
- Childcare
-
pay 36.9% less in Rome
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 22.0% less in Rome
- Clothing
-
pay 13.7% less in Rome
Expenses including childcare, entertainment and sports, clothing, restaurants, groceries, and housing are lower in Rome.
If you lived in Rome instead of Des Moines, you would:
pay 10.8% less for restaurants
|
Des Moines
|
Rome
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$16.00
|
$16.08
€14.11
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$10.00
|
$10.72
€9.41
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.36
|
$2.23
€1.96
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.06
|
$1.12
€0.99
|
|
pay 7.0% less for groceries
|
Des Moines
|
Rome
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$2.86
|
$1.78
€1.56
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$5.99
|
$7.00
€6.15
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$3.92
|
$6.20
€5.44
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$3.09
|
$3.76
€3.30
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$4.38
|
$4.89
€4.29
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$2.10
|
$1.07
€0.94
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.73
|
$0.92
€0.81
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.59
|
$0.89
€0.78
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$1.74
|
$1.09
€0.96
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.75
|
$0.73
€0.64
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.36
|
$0.78
€0.69
|
|
pay 36.1% more for transportation
|
Des Moines
|
Rome
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$3.07
|
$7.15
€6.27
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$58.00
|
$37.51
€32.92
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$26,000.00
|
$26,794.08
€23,517.16
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$11.94
|
$17.15
€15.05
|
|
pay 4.7% less for housing
|
Des Moines
|
Rome
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$53.50
|
$29.46
€25.85
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,215.00
|
$1,180.31
€1,035.96
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$912.50
|
$763.10
€669.77
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$115.16
|
$167.26
€146.81
|
|
pay 36.9% less for childcare
|
Des Moines
|
Rome
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$1,357.76
|
$508.83
€446.60
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$11,812.00
|
$10,490.67
€9,207.66
|
|
pay 22.0% less for entertainment and sports
|
Des Moines
|
Rome
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$5.00
|
$5.36
€4.70
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$4.51
|
$1.53
€1.34
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$7.14
|
$6.43
€5.64
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$66.67
|
$58.31
€51.18
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$15.00
|
$10.72
€9.41
|
|
pay 13.7% less for clothing
|
Des Moines
|
Rome
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$56.43
|
$65.43
€57.43
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$42.50
|
$30.74
€26.98
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$90.50
|
$77.17
€67.73
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$143.00
|
$102.32
€89.81
|
|
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