Cost of living comparison

compared to

Iowa City vs. Athlone Cost of Living Summary

Iowa City is 7.7% cheaper than Athlone.

Restaurants
pay 27.7% less in Iowa City
Groceries
pay 5.5% more in Iowa City
Transportation
pay 28.8% less in Iowa City
Housing
pay 13.3% less in Iowa City
Childcare
pay 2.3 times more in Iowa City
Entertainment and Sports
pay 8.3% less in Iowa City
Clothing
pay 10.0% more in Iowa City

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

Iowa City vs. Athlone Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Iowa City instead of Athlone, you would:

pay 27.7% less for restaurants

 
Athlone
Iowa City
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant $22.38
€19.99
$14.00
 
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
$12.85
€11.47
$9.00
 
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) $2.90
€2.59
$2.83
 

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pay 5.5% more for groceries

 
Athlone
Iowa City
Bread
1 loaf
$1.29
€1.16
$2.71
 
Local cheese (8 oz) $5.49
€4.90
$4.65
 
Milk (1 gallon) $5.43
€4.85
$3.02
 

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pay 28.8% less for transportation

 
Athlone
Iowa City
Gasoline (1 gallon) $7.62
€6.81
$3.83
 
Monthly public transit pass ?? $16.00
 
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) $39,000.39
€34,823.33
$35,473.37
 

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pay 13.3% less for housing

 
Athlone
Iowa City
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
$48.52
€43.33
$82.25
 
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area $1,497.65
€1,337.24
$1,199.75
 
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center $1,371.68
€1,224.77
$1,075.75
 

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pay 2.3 times more for childcare

 
Athlone
Iowa City
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly $1,007.76
€899.83
$1,266.67
 
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters $5,374.73
€4,799.08
$23,429.75
 

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pay 8.3% less for entertainment and sports

 
Athlone
Iowa City
Domestic/local beer (1 pint) $7.28
€6.50
$5.00
 
Cappuccino in mid-range area $4.38
€3.91
$5.67
 
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
$17.92
€16.00
$8.89
 

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pay 10.0% more for clothing

 
Athlone
Iowa City
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
$94.91
€84.74
$64.22
 
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
$41.06
€36.66
$50.56
 
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
$85.38
€76.24
$100.00
 

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We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world. Sources: MyLifeElsewhere's cost-of-living dataset (prices updated November 2026). How we calculate this

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