Cost of living comparison

 Sweden
compared to
 Washington, USA
Washington vs. Sweden Cost of Living Summary

Washington is 2.7 times more expensive than Sweden overall.

Restaurants
pay 33.0% more in Washington
Groceries
pay 31.3% more in Washington
Transportation
pay 8.2% less in Washington
Housing
pay 2.1 times more in Washington
Childcare
pay 10.8 times more in Washington
Entertainment and Sports
pay 29.2% more in Washington
Clothing
pay 7.7% less in Washington

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

Washington vs. Sweden Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Washington instead of Sweden, you would:

pay 33.0% more for restaurants

 
Sweden
Washington
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant $11.92
SEK119.33
$20.67
 
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
$9.45
SEK94.66
$11.36
 
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) $2.04
SEK20.44
$2.69
 

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pay 31.3% more for groceries

 
Sweden
Washington
Bread
1 loaf
$2.49
SEK24.89
$3.73
 
Local cheese (8 oz) $5.18
SEK51.91
$6.70
 
Milk (1 gallon) $5.43
SEK54.42
$4.02
 

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pay 8.2% less for transportation

 
Sweden
Washington
Gasoline (1 gallon) $6.64
SEK66.44
$4.34
 
Monthly public transit pass $68.10
SEK681.91
$62.97
 
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) $26,850.74
SEK268,850.57
$34,230.18
 

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pay 2.1 times more for housing

 
Sweden
Washington
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
$30.29
SEK303.26
$66.07
 
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area $821.73
SEK8,227.77
$1,678.49
 
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center $641.62
SEK6,424.41
$1,500.86
 

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pay 10.8 times more for childcare

 
Sweden
Washington
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly $122.27
SEK1,224.31
$1,651.91
 
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters $3,135.75
SEK31,397.56
$25,288.69
 

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pay 29.2% more for entertainment and sports

 
Sweden
Washington
Domestic/local beer (1 pint) $6.64
SEK66.50
$6.59
 
Cappuccino in mid-range area $3.78
SEK37.90
$5.24
 
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
$6.41
SEK64.17
$10.62
 

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pay 7.7% less for clothing

 
Sweden
Washington
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
$79.10
SEK791.98
$52.46
 
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
$35.56
SEK356.06
$40.64
 
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
$84.42
SEK845.30
$85.80
 

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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: April 2025
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