Cost of living comparison

 Iowa, USA
compared to
 France
France vs. Iowa Cost of Living Summary

France is 0.1% more expensive than Iowa.

Restaurants
pay 12.0% more in France
Groceries
pay 2.4% less in France
Transportation
pay 42.1% more in France
Housing
pay 28.5% less in France
Childcare
pay 42.9% less in France
Entertainment and Sports
pay 5.3% less in France
Clothing
pay 26.0% more in France

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

France vs. Iowa Cost Breakdown

If you lived in France instead of Iowa, you would:

pay 12.0% more for restaurants

 
Iowa
France
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant $15.50
 
$15.64
€13.77
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
$9.86
 
$10.86
€9.56
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) $2.25
 
$2.73
€2.41

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pay 2.4% less for groceries

 
Iowa
France
Bread
1 loaf
$2.75
 
$1.71
€1.51
Local cheese (8 oz) $5.26
 
$8.46
€7.45
Milk (1 gallon) $3.55
 
$4.52
€3.98

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pay 42.1% more for transportation

 
Iowa
France
Gasoline (1 gallon) $3.26
 
$7.25
€6.39
Monthly public transit pass $41.60
 
$50.39
€44.36
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) $28,209.92
 
$31,262.62
€27,524.76

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pay 28.5% less for housing

 
Iowa
France
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
$68.83
 
$30.07
€26.47
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area $1,149.79
 
$750.17
€660.48
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center $848.38
 
$604.38
€532.12

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pay 42.9% less for childcare

 
Iowa
France
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly $1,043.98
 
$690.26
€607.73
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters $19,039.50
 
$9,163.56
€8,067.94

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pay 5.3% less for entertainment and sports

 
Iowa
France
Domestic/local beer (1 pint) $4.95
 
$6.20
€5.46
Cappuccino in mid-range area $5.14
 
$3.01
€2.65
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
$8.68
 
$11.83
€10.42

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pay 26.0% more for clothing

 
Iowa
France
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
$50.44
 
$89.62
€78.91
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
$39.50
 
$37.76
€33.24
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
$83.35
 
$91.52
€80.58

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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: April 2025
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