Cost of living comparison

compared to

California vs. Belgium Cost of Living Summary

California is 43.9% more expensive than Belgium overall.

Restaurants
pay 0.6% less in California
Groceries
pay 43.7% more in California
Transportation
pay 5.6% less in California
Housing
pay 2.1 times more in California
Childcare
pay 54.9% more in California
Entertainment and Sports
pay 34.3% more in California
Clothing
pay 15.1% less in California

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

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California vs. Belgium Cost Breakdown

If you lived in California instead of Belgium, you would:

pay 0.6% less for restaurants

 
Belgium
California
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant $21.51
€19.21
$22.31
 
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
 $12.72
€11.35
$12.78
 
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) $3.15
€2.81
$2.96
 
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pay 43.7% more for groceries

 
Belgium
California
Bread
1 loaf
 $2.56
€2.28
$4.33
 
Local cheese (8 oz) $7.21
€6.43
$7.51
 
Milk (1 gallon) $4.74
€4.23
$4.92
 
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pay 5.6% less for transportation

 
Belgium
California
Gasoline (1 gallon) $7.52
€6.72
$5.53
 
Monthly public transit pass $50.17
€44.79
$64.45
 
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) $34,462.94
€30,771.86
$35,604.61
 
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pay 2.1 times more for housing

 
Belgium
California
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
 $51.15
€45.67
$69.16
 
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area $940.80
€840.04
$2,414.89
 
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center $826.78
€738.23
$2,061.17
 
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pay 54.9% more for childcare

 
Belgium
California
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly $923.48
€824.58
$1,659.26
 
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters $22,984.85
€20,523.10
$30,706.19
 
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pay 34.3% more for entertainment and sports

 
Belgium
California
Domestic/local beer (1 pint) $4.94
€4.41
$7.15
 
Cappuccino in mid-range area $4.03
€3.59
$5.63
 
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
 $12.32
€11.00
$11.42
 
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pay 15.1% less for clothing

 
Belgium
California
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
 $100.04
€89.32
$58.89
 
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
 $43.19
€38.56
$43.96
 
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
 $96.42
€86.09
$91.63
 
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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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Compare further: Belgium vs. California

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