Cost of living comparison
compared to
Iowa vs. Alaska Cost of Living Summary
Iowa is 13.4% cheaper than Alaska.
- Restaurants
-
pay 24.5% less in Iowa
- Groceries
-
pay 30.9% less in Iowa
- Transportation
-
pay 14.9% less in Iowa
- Housing
-
pay 35.2% less in Iowa
- Childcare
-
pay 41.5% more in Iowa
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 20.7% less in Iowa
- Clothing
-
pay 9.2% less in Iowa
Expenses including housing, groceries, restaurants, entertainment and sports, transportation, and clothing are lower in Iowa.
Iowa vs. Alaska Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Iowa instead of Alaska, you would:
pay 24.5% less for restaurants
|
Alaska
|
Iowa
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$29.06
|
$15.83
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$13.66
|
$10.57
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.79
|
$2.46
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.22
|
$1.82
|
|
Alaska vs. Iowa - Cost of restaurants
pay 30.9% less for groceries
|
Alaska
|
Iowa
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$4.78
|
$2.77
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$8.03
|
$5.89
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$4.69
|
$3.33
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$4.85
|
$3.30
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$6.40
|
$4.57
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$3.59
|
$1.96
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$1.15
|
$0.65
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$2.75
|
$1.93
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$2.83
|
$1.93
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.28
|
$0.99
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.43
|
$1.30
|
|
Alaska vs. Iowa - Cost of groceries
pay 14.9% less for transportation
|
Alaska
|
Iowa
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$4.24
|
$3.02
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$47.50
|
$38.07
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$27,029.83
|
$28,093.10
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$18.16
|
$15.46
|
|
Alaska vs. Iowa - Cost of transportation
pay 35.2% less for housing
|
Alaska
|
Iowa
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$124.91
|
$65.62
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,500.50
|
$1,069.66
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,309.00
|
$852.78
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$190.02
|
$133.13
|
|
Alaska vs. Iowa - Cost of housing
pay 41.5% more for childcare
|
Alaska
|
Iowa
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$1,147.73
|
$1,152.45
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$10,350.00
|
$18,898.50
|
|
Alaska vs. Iowa - Cost of childcare
pay 20.7% less for entertainment and sports
|
Alaska
|
Iowa
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$6.84
|
$4.44
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$5.54
|
$5.43
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$13.05
|
$8.55
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$104.50
|
$63.76
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$12.65
|
$13.58
|
|
Alaska vs. Iowa - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 9.2% less for clothing
|
Alaska
|
Iowa
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$54.08
|
$55.34
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$48.00
|
$41.65
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$90.63
|
$81.56
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$127.30
|
$106.86
|
|
Alaska vs. Iowa - 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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