Cost of living comparison

 Illinois, USA
compared to
Pennsylvania vs. Illinois Cost of Living Summary

Pennsylvania is 6.3% more expensive than Illinois.

Restaurants
pay 0.5% less in Pennsylvania
Groceries
pay 18.8% more in Pennsylvania
Transportation
pay 4.7% more in Pennsylvania
Housing
pay 1.2% less in Pennsylvania
Childcare
pay 26.1% more in Pennsylvania
Entertainment and Sports
pay 1.3% less in Pennsylvania
Clothing
pay 2.3% less in Pennsylvania

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

Pennsylvania vs. Illinois Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Pennsylvania instead of Illinois, you would:

pay 0.5% less for restaurants

 
Illinois
Pennsylvania
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant $16.03
 
$19.53
 
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
$10.33
 
$9.30
 
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) $2.49
 
$2.27
 

Improve prices ·

pay 18.8% more for groceries

 
Illinois
Pennsylvania
Bread
1 loaf
$3.19
 
$3.25
 
Local cheese (8 oz) $5.63
 
$7.37
 
Milk (1 gallon) $3.30
 
$4.35
 

Improve prices ·

pay 4.7% more for transportation

 
Illinois
Pennsylvania
Gasoline (1 gallon) $3.61
 
$3.58
 
Monthly public transit pass $72.95
 
$66.58
 
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) $28,096.73
 
$31,817.25
 

Improve prices ·

pay 1.2% less for housing

 
Illinois
Pennsylvania
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
$65.96
 
$62.16
 
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area $1,375.37
 
$1,357.77
 
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center $1,146.99
 
$1,179.21
 

Improve prices ·

pay 26.1% more for childcare

 
Illinois
Pennsylvania
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly $1,394.11
 
$1,481.93
 
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters $24,405.00
 
$35,614.17
 

Improve prices ·

pay 1.3% less for entertainment and sports

 
Illinois
Pennsylvania
Domestic/local beer (1 pint) $5.17
 
$5.58
 
Cappuccino in mid-range area $4.81
 
$5.03
 
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
$9.79
 
$11.13
 

Improve prices ·

pay 2.3% less for clothing

 
Illinois
Pennsylvania
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
$51.50
 
$53.27
 
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
$41.59
 
$39.31
 
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
$80.60
 
$83.69
 

Improve prices ·
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: February 2025
Share this

Help us improve these prices

MyLifeElsewhere is a collaborative project. Please enter price information for your location to help assist us in making these comparisons more accurate. Learn more

ASK THE ELSEWHERE COMMUNITY

Join the Elsewhere community and ask a question about Pennsylvania or Illinois. It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.