Cost of living comparison

 South Dakota, USA
compared to
 Arizona, USA
Arizona vs. South Dakota Cost of Living Summary

Arizona is 16.4% more expensive than South Dakota.

Restaurants
pay 13.1% more in Arizona
Groceries
pay 8.8% less in Arizona
Transportation
pay 24.5% more in Arizona
Housing
pay 35.3% more in Arizona
Childcare
pay 51.5% more in Arizona
Entertainment and Sports
pay 7.2% more in Arizona
Clothing
pay 8.3% less in Arizona

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

Arizona vs. South Dakota Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Arizona instead of South Dakota, you would:

pay 13.1% more for restaurants

 
South Dakota
Arizona
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant $14.00
 
$19.56
 
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
$10.21
 
$10.75
 
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) $3.08
 
$2.58
 

Improve prices ·

pay 8.8% less for groceries

 
South Dakota
Arizona
Bread
1 loaf
$3.25
 
$3.49
 
Local cheese (8 oz) $6.20
 
$5.20
 
Milk (1 gallon) $3.90
 
$3.50
 

Improve prices ·

pay 24.5% more for transportation

 
South Dakota
Arizona
Gasoline (1 gallon) $3.32
 
$3.79
 
Monthly public transit pass $30.00
 
$53.40
 
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) $34,159.27
 
$31,537.50
 

Improve prices ·

pay 35.3% more for housing

 
South Dakota
Arizona
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
$59.17
 
$80.87
 
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area $1,077.75
 
$1,573.68
 
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center $1,002.25
 
$1,370.59
 

Improve prices ·

pay 51.5% more for childcare

 
South Dakota
Arizona
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly $725.00
 
$1,069.58
 
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters $7,800.00
 
$12,135.00
 

Improve prices ·

pay 7.2% more for entertainment and sports

 
South Dakota
Arizona
Domestic/local beer (1 pint) $4.12
 
$5.76
 
Cappuccino in mid-range area $5.07
 
$5.21
 
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
$9.04
 
$9.94
 

Improve prices ·

pay 8.3% less for clothing

 
South Dakota
Arizona
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
$50.46
 
$52.15
 
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
$55.00
 
$41.56
 
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
$91.50
 
$86.98
 

Improve prices ·
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: February 2025
Share this

Help us improve these prices

MyLifeElsewhere is a collaborative project. Please enter price information for your location to help assist us in making these comparisons more accurate. Learn more

ASK THE ELSEWHERE COMMUNITY

Join the Elsewhere community and ask a question about Arizona or South Dakota. It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.