Cost of living comparison
California is 18.8% more expensive than Houston.
If you lived in California instead of Houston, you would:
pay 14.9% more for restaurants
Houston
|
California
|
||
---|---|---|---|
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$18.00
|
$21.02
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$9.00
|
$11.52
|
|
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.53
|
$2.71
|
|
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.00
|
$2.16
|
|
pay 30.0% more for groceries
Houston
|
California
|
||
---|---|---|---|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$2.97
|
$4.14
|
|
Local cheese (8 oz) |
$6.39
|
$6.95
|
|
Milk (1 gallon) |
$3.43
|
$4.61
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$3.53
|
$4.33
|
|
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$5.15
|
$5.70
|
|
Apples (1 lb) |
$1.99
|
$2.34
|
|
Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.58
|
$0.92
|
|
Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.72
|
$1.91
|
|
Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$1.28
|
$2.38
|
|
Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.30
|
$1.39
|
|
Onions (1 lb) |
$1.07
|
$1.44
|
|
pay 9.9% more for transportation
Houston
|
California
|
||
---|---|---|---|
Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$2.88
|
$4.83
|
|
Monthly public transit pass |
$75.00
|
$62.05
|
|
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$36,278.39
|
$30,005.28
|
|
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$18.79
|
$20.07
|
|
pay 35.2% more for housing
Houston
|
California
|
||
---|---|---|---|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$66.71
|
$68.54
|
|
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,582.84
|
$2,371.29
|
|
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,189.12
|
$2,055.18
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$148.41
|
$171.68
|
|
pay 24.9% more for childcare
Houston
|
California
|
||
---|---|---|---|
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$1,457.58
|
$1,682.51
|
|
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$23,000.00
|
$30,905.75
|
|
pay 22.8% more for entertainment and sports
Houston
|
California
|
||
---|---|---|---|
Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$5.00
|
$7.00
|
|
Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$5.27
|
$5.34
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$9.97
|
$10.91
|
|
Monthly membership at local gym |
$39.65
|
$66.35
|
|
Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$15.00
|
$14.41
|
|
pay 5.9% less for clothing
Houston
|
California
|
||
---|---|---|---|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$47.14
|
$52.77
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$43.00
|
$40.15
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$103.28
|
$85.15
|
|
Men's business shoes (leather) |
$132.12
|
$117.31
|
|
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