Cost of living comparison
United States is 17.9% more expensive than Belgium.
If you lived in United States instead of Belgium, you would:
pay 17.1% less for restaurants
|
Belgium
|
United States
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$16.73
€14.67
|
$15.20
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$9.01
€7.90
|
$8.21
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.55
€2.24
|
$2.01
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.25
€1.97
|
$1.60
|
|
pay 46.2% more for groceries
|
Belgium
|
United States
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$1.75
€1.54
|
$2.85
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$6.31
€5.53
|
$5.66
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$3.66
€3.21
|
$3.38
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$2.63
€2.31
|
$2.72
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$4.42
€3.88
|
$4.69
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.03
€0.90
|
$2.12
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.82
€0.72
|
$0.76
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.11
€0.97
|
$1.89
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$1.03
€0.90
|
$1.99
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.67
€0.59
|
$1.26
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$0.60
€0.53
|
$1.23
|
|
pay 7.6% less for transportation
|
Belgium
|
United States
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$7.32
€6.42
|
$4.54
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$48.96
€42.93
|
$64.19
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$23,790.80
€20,862.18
|
$24,050.13
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$21.91
€19.21
|
$16.53
|
|
pay 51.7% more for housing
|
Belgium
|
United States
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$50.69
€44.45
|
$68.65
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$771.84
€676.83
|
$1,446.14
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$633.34
€555.38
|
$1,166.13
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$132.85
€116.49
|
$132.57
|
|
pay 48.4% more for childcare
|
Belgium
|
United States
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$469.39
€411.61
|
$980.97
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$17,088.37
€14,984.81
|
$14,983.58
|
|
pay 25.7% more for entertainment and sports
|
Belgium
|
United States
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$4.01
€3.51
|
$5.14
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$3.08
€2.70
|
$4.34
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$7.63
€6.69
|
$8.25
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$28.15
€24.68
|
$40.54
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$11.03
€9.67
|
$11.80
|
|
pay 22.2% less for clothing
|
Belgium
|
United States
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$94.55
€82.91
|
$44.10
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$39.20
€34.37
|
$36.31
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$87.36
€76.61
|
$77.71
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$119.01
€104.36
|
$98.75
|
|
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