Cost of living comparison

 Madrid, Spain
compared to
 Costa Mesa (CA), United States
Costa Mesa vs. Madrid Cost of Living Summary

Costa Mesa is 42.3% more expensive than Madrid.

Restaurants
pay 14.8% more in Costa Mesa
Groceries
pay 68.1% more in Costa Mesa
Transportation
pay 28.9% less in Costa Mesa
Housing
pay 94.1% more in Costa Mesa
Childcare
pay 93.8% more in Costa Mesa
Entertainment and Sports
pay 60.8% more in Costa Mesa
Clothing
pay 6.7% less in Costa Mesa

The cost of housing, childcare, groceries, entertainment and sports, and restaurants in Costa Mesa are more expensive than in Madrid. Expenses including transportation and clothing are lower in Costa Mesa. Notably, housing and childcare are significantly more expensive in Costa Mesa.

Costa Mesa vs. Madrid Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Costa Mesa instead of Madrid, you would:

pay 14.8% more for restaurants

 
Madrid
Costa Mesa
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant $16.08
€14.17
$20.00
 
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
$10.72
€9.44
$11.00
 
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) $2.79
€2.46
$3.00
 

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pay 68.1% more for groceries

 
Madrid
Costa Mesa
Bread
1 loaf
$1.50
€1.32
$3.86
 
Local cheese (8 oz) $6.92
€6.10
$5.56
 
Milk (1 gallon) $4.41
€3.88
$4.13
 

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pay 28.9% less for transportation

 
Madrid
Costa Mesa
Gasoline (1 gallon) $6.79
€5.98
$4.81
 
Monthly public transit pass $42.87
€37.78
??
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) $35,759.38
€31,512.59
$25,499.50
 

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pay 94.1% more for housing

 
Madrid
Costa Mesa
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
$31.85
€28.06
$66.67
 
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area $1,468.90
€1,294.45
$2,798.67
 
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center $1,074.71
€947.08
$2,466.67
 

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pay 93.8% more for childcare

 
Madrid
Costa Mesa
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly $567.57
€500.16
$1,100.00
 
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters $10,069.47
€8,873.62
??

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pay 60.8% more for entertainment and sports

 
Madrid
Costa Mesa
Domestic/local beer (1 pint) $3.75
€3.31
$7.00
 
Cappuccino in mid-range area $2.59
€2.28
$5.50
 
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
$6.43
€5.67
$11.00
 

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pay 6.7% less for clothing

 
Madrid
Costa Mesa
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
$90.50
€79.75
$51.67
 
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
$37.21
€32.79
$48.75
 
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
$97.88
€86.25
$86.67
 

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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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