Cost of living comparison
Salt Lake City vs. Albuquerque Cost of Living Summary
Salt Lake City is 21.0% more expensive than Albuquerque.
- Restaurants
-
pay 3.6% less in Salt Lake City
- Groceries
-
pay 8.6% less in Salt Lake City
- Transportation
-
pay 2.4 times more in Salt Lake City
- Housing
-
pay 28.9% more in Salt Lake City
- Childcare
-
pay 15.5% less in Salt Lake City
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 5.2% less in Salt Lake City
- Clothing
-
pay 7.3% more in Salt Lake City
The cost of transportation, housing, and clothing in Salt Lake City are more expensive than in Albuquerque. Expenses including childcare, groceries, entertainment and sports, and restaurants are lower in Salt Lake City. Notably, transportation is significantly more expensive in Salt Lake City.
Salt Lake City vs. Albuquerque Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Salt Lake City instead of Albuquerque, you would:
pay 3.6% less for restaurants
|
Albuquerque
|
Salt Lake City
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$17.00
|
$18.00
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$10.00
|
$10.00
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.94
|
$2.24
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.41
|
$1.69
|
|
pay 8.6% less for groceries
|
Albuquerque
|
Salt Lake City
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$3.23
|
$3.87
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$5.91
|
$5.94
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$3.62
|
$3.44
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$4.82
|
$4.17
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$4.30
|
$5.54
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$2.16
|
$1.85
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.66
|
$0.64
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.90
|
$1.66
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$2.36
|
$1.79
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.45
|
$1.02
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.50
|
$1.12
|
|
pay 2.4 times more for transportation
|
Albuquerque
|
Salt Lake City
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$3.75
|
$4.33
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$4.00
|
$85.00
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$30,680.00
|
$36,628.00
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$19.51
|
$20.90
|
|
pay 28.9% more for housing
|
Albuquerque
|
Salt Lake City
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$72.44
|
$79.00
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,167.38
|
$1,640.90
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,117.78
|
$1,372.73
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$120.44
|
$148.48
|
|
pay 15.5% less for childcare
|
Albuquerque
|
Salt Lake City
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$1,500.00
|
$1,308.40
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$25,175.33
|
$20,595.56
|
|
pay 5.2% less for entertainment and sports
|
Albuquerque
|
Salt Lake City
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$6.00
|
$6.00
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$5.00
|
$5.03
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$10.42
|
$10.16
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$49.00
|
$34.55
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$13.00
|
$15.00
|
|
pay 7.3% more for clothing
|
Albuquerque
|
Salt Lake City
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$54.31
|
$71.00
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$43.63
|
$45.52
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$104.18
|
$110.87
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$118.44
|
$108.07
|
|
We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world. Sources: MyLifeElsewhere's cost-of-living dataset (prices updated October 2026). How we calculate this
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