Cost of living comparison
compared to
San Francisco vs. Alabama Cost of Living Summary
San Francisco is 82.9% more expensive than Alabama.
- Restaurants
-
pay 54.7% more in San Francisco
- Groceries
-
pay 56.1% more in San Francisco
- Transportation
-
pay 49.5% more in San Francisco
- Housing
-
pay 2.2 times more in San Francisco
- Childcare
-
pay 2.8 times more in San Francisco
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 75.6% more in San Francisco
- Clothing
-
pay 42.8% more in San Francisco
The cost of childcare, housing, entertainment and sports, groceries, restaurants, and transportation in San Francisco are more expensive than in Alabama. Notably, childcare, housing, and entertainment and sports are significantly more expensive in San Francisco.
San Francisco vs. Alabama Cost Breakdown
If you lived in San Francisco instead of Alabama, you would:
pay 54.7% more for restaurants
|
Alabama
|
San Francisco
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$16.75
|
$30.00
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$10.36
|
$14.50
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.07
|
$3.30
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$1.85
|
$2.59
|
|
Alabama vs. San Francisco - Cost of restaurants
pay 56.1% more for groceries
|
Alabama
|
San Francisco
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$3.26
|
$5.06
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$5.23
|
$11.69
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$3.69
|
$5.85
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$3.58
|
$6.26
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$4.89
|
$6.63
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$2.45
|
$3.22
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.76
|
$1.31
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.76
|
$2.37
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$1.91
|
$3.23
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.33
|
$1.67
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.33
|
$1.81
|
|
Alabama vs. San Francisco - Cost of groceries
pay 49.5% more for transportation
|
Alabama
|
San Francisco
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$2.84
|
$4.89
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$50.00
|
$90.00
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$30,098.54
|
$36,753.89
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$16.41
|
$20.31
|
|
Alabama vs. San Francisco - Cost of transportation
pay 2.2 times more for housing
|
Alabama
|
San Francisco
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$63.63
|
$68.78
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,036.37
|
$3,446.66
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$847.06
|
$2,736.00
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$144.14
|
$179.63
|
|
Alabama vs. San Francisco - Cost of housing
pay 2.8 times more for childcare
|
Alabama
|
San Francisco
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$1,146.13
|
$3,236.11
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$15,177.33
|
$42,000.00
|
|
Alabama vs. San Francisco - Cost of childcare
pay 75.6% more for entertainment and sports
|
Alabama
|
San Francisco
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$4.96
|
$8.00
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$4.95
|
$5.98
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$7.76
|
$14.00
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$41.81
|
$109.64
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$11.07
|
$17.00
|
|
Alabama vs. San Francisco - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 42.8% more for clothing
|
Alabama
|
San Francisco
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$39.67
|
$70.00
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$35.87
|
$48.82
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$79.77
|
$102.00
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$102.17
|
$133.67
|
|
Alabama vs. San Francisco - Cost of clothing
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: December 2025
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