Cost of living comparison
Chicago is 18.3% cheaper than New York City.
If you lived in Chicago instead of New York City, you would:
pay 6.5% less for restaurants
|
New York City
|
Chicago
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$30.00
|
$25.00
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$12.00
|
$11.34
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$3.22
|
$3.02
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.39
|
$2.44
|
|
pay 18.4% less for groceries
|
New York City
|
Chicago
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$4.82
|
$4.19
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$8.52
|
$7.87
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$5.80
|
$3.94
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$5.06
|
$3.75
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$6.82
|
$6.63
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$3.25
|
$2.44
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$1.04
|
$0.90
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$2.67
|
$2.19
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$2.70
|
$2.27
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.73
|
$1.16
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.66
|
$1.37
|
|
pay 19.6% less for transportation
|
New York City
|
Chicago
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$3.80
|
$4.16
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$132.50
|
$75.00
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$35,000.00
|
$31,965.00
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$22.40
|
$14.43
|
|
pay 27.8% less for housing
|
New York City
|
Chicago
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$68.20
|
$58.52
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$4,097.13
|
$2,360.96
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$2,883.17
|
$1,512.92
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$136.26
|
$126.63
|
|
pay 26.1% less for childcare
|
New York City
|
Chicago
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$3,253.56
|
$2,475.00
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$59,000.00
|
$42,300.00
|
|
pay 26.0% less for entertainment and sports
|
New York City
|
Chicago
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$9.00
|
$7.50
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$5.95
|
$5.30
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$17.00
|
$17.00
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$148.06
|
$72.00
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$20.00
|
$15.00
|
|
pay 4.0% less for clothing
|
New York City
|
Chicago
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$68.92
|
$64.98
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$45.62
|
$51.67
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$107.85
|
$97.00
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$168.36
|
$146.00
|
|
Change currency:
ASK THE ELSEWHERE COMMUNITY
Join the Elsewhere community and ask a question about Chicago or New York City. It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.