Cost of living comparison
compared to
Des Moines vs. Bethlehem Cost of Living Summary
Des Moines is 11.5% cheaper than Bethlehem.
Des Moines vs. Bethlehem Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Des Moines instead of Bethlehem, you would:
pay 4.5% more for restaurants
|
Bethlehem
|
Des Moines
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$18.00
|
$20.00
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$13.00
|
$12.00
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$3.00
|
$3.00
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$1.94
|
$2.49
|
|
Bethlehem vs. Des Moines - Cost of restaurants
pay 12.2% less for groceries
|
Bethlehem
|
Des Moines
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$3.99
|
$2.95
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$6.06
|
$4.77
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$4.37
|
$3.38
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$4.17
|
$3.93
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$7.40
|
$4.39
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$2.83
|
$2.01
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.59
|
$0.70
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.86
|
$2.01
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$1.90
|
$1.70
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.99
|
$1.43
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.22
|
$1.00
|
|
Bethlehem vs. Des Moines - Cost of groceries
pay 6.2% more for transportation
|
Bethlehem
|
Des Moines
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$3.63
|
$3.71
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass | ?? |
$58.00
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$23,000.00
|
$35,052.00
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$29.00
|
$11.94
|
|
Bethlehem vs. Des Moines - Cost of transportation
pay 26.7% less for housing
|
Bethlehem
|
Des Moines
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$77.80
|
$71.15
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,547.50
|
$1,161.80
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,346.00
|
$864.75
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$158.04
|
$143.28
|
|
Bethlehem vs. Des Moines - Cost of housing
pay 53.6% less for childcare
|
Bethlehem
|
Des Moines
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$1,000.00
|
$1,183.50
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$65,000.00
|
$11,812.00
|
|
Bethlehem vs. Des Moines - Cost of childcare
pay 16.0% more for entertainment and sports
|
Bethlehem
|
Des Moines
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$5.25
|
$5.00
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$5.00
|
$6.00
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$9.50
|
$8.03
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$36.67
|
$63.75
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$15.00
|
$15.00
|
|
Bethlehem vs. Des Moines - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 44.7% more for clothing
|
Bethlehem
|
Des Moines
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$53.00
|
$60.68
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$30.00
|
$43.33
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$66.67
|
$103.00
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$85.00
|
$145.78
|
|
Bethlehem vs. Des Moines - 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: October 2026
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