Cost of living comparison

 Ecuador
compared to
 Des Moines (IA), United States
Des Moines vs. Ecuador Cost of Living Summary

Des Moines is 2.4 times more expensive than Ecuador overall.

Restaurants
pay 3.0 times more in Des Moines
Groceries
pay 96.7% more in Des Moines
Transportation
pay 42.5% more in Des Moines
Housing
pay 2.9 times more in Des Moines
Childcare
pay 4.2 times more in Des Moines
Entertainment and Sports
pay 95.5% more in Des Moines
Clothing
pay 19.5% more in Des Moines

The cost of childcare, restaurants, housing, groceries, entertainment and sports, and transportation in Des Moines are more expensive than in Ecuador. Notably, childcare, restaurants, and housing are significantly more expensive in Des Moines.

Des Moines vs. Ecuador Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Des Moines instead of Ecuador, you would:

pay 3.0 times more for restaurants

 
Ecuador
Des Moines
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant $3.39
 
$16.00
 
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
$6.83
 
$10.00
 
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) $0.90
 
$2.36
 

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pay 96.7% more for groceries

 
Ecuador
Des Moines
Bread
1 loaf
$1.64
 
$2.86
 
Local cheese (8 oz) $3.00
 
$5.99
 
Milk (1 gallon) $4.18
 
$3.92
 

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pay 42.5% more for transportation

 
Ecuador
Des Moines
Gasoline (1 gallon) $2.46
 
$3.07
 
Monthly public transit pass $24.42
 
$58.00
 
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) $23,111.11
 
$26,000.00
 

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pay 2.9 times more for housing

 
Ecuador
Des Moines
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
$30.71
 
$53.50
 
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area $344.59
 
$1,215.00
 
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center $278.18
 
$912.50
 

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pay 4.2 times more for childcare

 
Ecuador
Des Moines
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly $227.49
 
$1,357.76
 
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters $4,800.83
 
$11,812.00
 

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pay 95.5% more for entertainment and sports

 
Ecuador
Des Moines
Domestic/local beer (1 pint) $2.17
 
$5.00
 
Cappuccino in mid-range area $2.37
 
$4.51
 
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
$5.97
 
$7.14
 

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pay 19.5% more for clothing

 
Ecuador
Des Moines
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
$53.26
 
$56.43
 
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
$46.74
 
$42.50
 
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
$93.54
 
$90.50
 

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The statistics used to build this comparison are calculated using data from users just like you. We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world. Learn more about our data sources. Page last updated: March 2025
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See the cost of living in Ecuador vs. United States. This provides a comparison of the average cost of living from cities within Ecuador and United States.

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