Cost of living comparison
Maldives is 20.5% cheaper than Iowa.
If you lived in Maldives instead of Iowa, you would:
pay 48.6% less for restaurants
|
Iowa
|
Maldives
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$15.50
|
$5.50
MVR84.72
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$9.86
|
$9.71
MVR149.51
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.25
|
$1.21
MVR18.69
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$1.61
|
$0.28
MVR4.36
|
|
pay 4.4% less for groceries
|
Iowa
|
Maldives
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$2.75
|
$1.54
MVR23.67
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$5.26
|
$5.65
MVR87.05
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$3.55
|
$6.78
MVR104.47
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$2.97
|
$1.65
MVR25.42
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$4.90
|
$2.47
MVR38.07
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$2.27
|
$2.00
MVR30.80
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.66
|
$1.70
MVR26.22
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$2.31
|
$1.74
MVR26.84
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$2.19
|
$1.61
MVR24.87
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.17
|
$0.62
MVR9.62
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.32
|
$0.54
MVR8.27
|
|
pay 3.5% more for transportation
|
Iowa
|
Maldives
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$3.26
|
$3.56
MVR54.78
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$41.60
|
$22.65
MVR348.87
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$28,209.92
|
$38,834.95
MVR598,058.25
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$15.53
|
$17.48
MVR269.13
|
|
pay 10.0% less for housing
|
Iowa
|
Maldives
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$68.83
|
$65.94
MVR1,015.45
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,149.79
|
$1,098.53
MVR16,917.30
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$848.38
|
$829.29
MVR12,771.04
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$132.52
|
$94.04
MVR1,448.24
|
|
pay 83.3% less for childcare
|
Iowa
|
Maldives
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$1,043.98
|
$172.53
MVR2,657.00
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$19,039.50
|
$3,198.06
MVR49,250.10
|
|
pay 15.2% less for entertainment and sports
|
Iowa
|
Maldives
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$4.95
|
$4.69
MVR72.27
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$5.14
|
$3.24
MVR49.84
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$8.68
|
$7.12
MVR109.64
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$61.12
|
$71.60
MVR1,102.67
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$12.83
|
$8.58
MVR132.07
|
|
pay 14.5% more for clothing
|
Iowa
|
Maldives
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$50.44
|
$55.89
MVR860.71
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$39.50
|
$58.79
MVR905.39
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$83.35
|
$101.13
MVR1,557.44
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$105.02
|
$80.91
MVR1,245.95
|
|
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