Cost of living comparison

 Houston (TX), United States
compared to
 New Orleans (LA), United States
New Orleans vs. Houston Cost of Living Summary

New Orleans is 3.7% more expensive than Houston.

Restaurants
pay 25.3% more in New Orleans
Groceries
pay 28.6% more in New Orleans
Transportation
pay 12.1% less in New Orleans
Housing
pay 5.0% more in New Orleans
Childcare
pay 24.1% less in New Orleans
Entertainment and Sports
pay 13.9% more in New Orleans
Clothing
pay 10.6% less in New Orleans

The cost of groceries, restaurants, entertainment and sports, and housing in New Orleans are more expensive than in Houston. Expenses including childcare, transportation, and clothing are lower in New Orleans.

New Orleans vs. Houston Cost Breakdown

If you lived in New Orleans instead of Houston, you would:

pay 25.3% more for restaurants

 
Houston
New Orleans
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant $18.00
 
$25.00
 
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
$9.00
 
$12.00
 
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) $2.53
 
$2.99
 

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pay 28.6% more for groceries

 
Houston
New Orleans
Bread
1 loaf
$2.97
 
$3.84
 
Local cheese (8 oz) $6.39
 
$8.06
 
Milk (1 gallon) $3.43
 
$4.78
 

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pay 12.1% less for transportation

 
Houston
New Orleans
Gasoline (1 gallon) $2.88
 
$3.07
 
Monthly public transit pass $75.00
 
$45.00
 
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) $36,278.39
 
$36,884.90
 

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pay 5.0% more for housing

 
Houston
New Orleans
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
$66.71
 
$70.24
 
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area $1,582.84
 
$1,788.46
 
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center $1,189.12
 
$1,119.08
 

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pay 24.1% less for childcare

 
Houston
New Orleans
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly $1,457.58
 
$1,563.89
 
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters $23,000.00
 
$10,230.00
 

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pay 13.9% more for entertainment and sports

 
Houston
New Orleans
Domestic/local beer (1 pint) $5.00
 
$5.60
 
Cappuccino in mid-range area $5.27
 
$5.12
 
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
$9.97
 
$8.49
 

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pay 10.6% less for clothing

 
Houston
New Orleans
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
$47.14
 
$52.14
 
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
$43.00
 
$36.67
 
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
$103.28
 
$79.17
 

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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: June 2025
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