Cost of living comparison
Iowa is 24.7% cheaper than San Diego.
If you lived in Iowa instead of San Diego, you would:
pay 26.8% less for restaurants
|
San Diego
|
Iowa
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$22.00
|
$15.06
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$12.00
|
$9.56
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.83
|
$2.17
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.53
|
$1.72
|
|
pay 12.0% less for groceries
|
San Diego
|
Iowa
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$4.05
|
$2.57
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$6.98
|
$5.42
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$4.49
|
$3.44
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$4.19
|
$2.96
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$6.63
|
$4.79
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$2.21
|
$2.10
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.81
|
$0.64
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.46
|
$1.90
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$2.00
|
$2.09
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.53
|
$1.05
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.00
|
$1.29
|
|
pay 31.4% less for transportation
|
San Diego
|
Iowa
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$5.14
|
$3.22
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$72.00
|
$41.67
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$30,000.00
|
$27,291.62
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$23.67
|
$14.84
|
|
pay 43.9% less for housing
|
San Diego
|
Iowa
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$73.13
|
$68.69
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$2,785.55
|
$1,107.08
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$2,355.05
|
$831.82
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$251.36
|
$140.13
|
|
pay 14.3% less for childcare
|
San Diego
|
Iowa
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$1,713.33
|
$1,030.74
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$18,333.33
|
$20,379.75
|
|
pay 29.7% less for entertainment and sports
|
San Diego
|
Iowa
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$8.00
|
$5.03
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$5.51
|
$5.05
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$10.53
|
$8.26
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$89.62
|
$45.83
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$18.00
|
$12.12
|
|
pay 14.7% less for clothing
|
San Diego
|
Iowa
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$55.93
|
$46.34
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$54.11
|
$41.37
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$88.05
|
$81.19
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$119.17
|
$106.97
|
|
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