Cost of living comparison
compared to
Lake Charles vs. Athens Cost of Living Summary
Lake Charles is 31.2% more expensive than Athens.
- Restaurants
-
pay 62.2% more in Lake Charles
- Groceries
-
pay 58.2% more in Lake Charles
- Transportation
-
pay 8.7% less in Lake Charles
- Housing
-
pay 49.2% more in Lake Charles
- Childcare
-
pay 82.1% more in Lake Charles
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 4.4% more in Lake Charles
- Clothing
-
pay 29.0% less in Lake Charles
The cost of childcare, restaurants, groceries, housing, and entertainment and sports in Lake Charles are more expensive than in Athens. Expenses including clothing and transportation are lower in Lake Charles. Notably, childcare is significantly more expensive in Lake Charles.
Lake Charles vs. Athens Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Lake Charles instead of Athens, you would:
pay 62.2% more for restaurants
|
Athens
|
Lake Charles
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$17.52
€15.11
|
$26.00
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$10.51
€9.06
|
$10.00
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.48
€2.14
|
$1.65
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$0.62
€0.54
|
$2.10
|
|
Athens vs. Lake Charles - Cost of restaurants
pay 58.2% more for groceries
|
Athens
|
Lake Charles
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$1.39
€1.20
|
$4.10
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$7.54
€6.50
|
$7.67
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$7.20
€6.21
|
$5.25
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$4.70
€4.05
|
$4.54
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$4.85
€4.18
|
$4.97
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.03
€0.89
|
$1.99
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.97
€0.84
|
$0.59
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$0.71
€0.61
|
$0.89
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$1.07
€0.92
|
$2.46
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.67
€0.58
|
$1.91
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$0.57
€0.49
|
$0.99
|
|
Athens vs. Lake Charles - Cost of groceries
pay 8.7% less for transportation
|
Athens
|
Lake Charles
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$7.94
€6.85
|
$2.98
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$35.04
€30.21
|
?? | |
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$29,198.27
€25,178.46
|
$36,884.90
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$14.02
€12.09
|
$15.43
|
|
Athens vs. Lake Charles - Cost of transportation
pay 49.2% more for housing
|
Athens
|
Lake Charles
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$34.45
€29.71
|
$60.00
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$685.67
€591.27
|
$1,050.00
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$609.10
€525.24
|
$1,000.00
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$165.77
€142.95
|
$174.91
|
|
Athens vs. Lake Charles - Cost of housing
pay 82.1% more for childcare
|
Athens
|
Lake Charles
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$566.82
€488.78
|
$1,563.89
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$11,581.98
€9,987.46
|
$10,230.00
|
|
Athens vs. Lake Charles - Cost of childcare
pay 4.4% more for entertainment and sports
|
Athens
|
Lake Charles
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$5.84
€5.04
|
$6.00
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$4.12
€3.55
|
$4.42
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$5.84
€5.04
|
$8.50
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$56.30
€48.55
|
$32.00
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$10.51
€9.06
|
$11.50
|
|
Athens vs. Lake Charles - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 29.0% less for clothing
|
Athens
|
Lake Charles
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$101.47
€87.50
|
$47.50
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$47.68
€41.11
|
$43.00
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$105.26
€90.77
|
$71.00
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$125.94
€108.60
|
$100.00
|
|
Athens vs. Lake Charles - 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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