Cost of living comparison
compared to
San Francisco vs. Birmingham Cost of Living Summary
San Francisco is 58.5% more expensive than Birmingham.
- Restaurants
-
pay 44.6% more in San Francisco
- Groceries
-
pay 32.2% more in San Francisco
- Transportation
-
pay 28.3% more in San Francisco
- Housing
-
pay 69.3% more in San Francisco
- Childcare
-
pay 2.5 times more in San Francisco
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 72.4% more in San Francisco
- Clothing
-
pay 16.9% more in San Francisco
San Francisco vs. Birmingham Cost Breakdown
If you lived in San Francisco instead of Birmingham, you would:
pay 44.6% more for restaurants
|
Birmingham
|
San Francisco
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$18.00
|
$30.00
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$9.00
|
$14.50
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.36
|
$3.30
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.33
|
$2.59
|
|
Birmingham vs. San Francisco - Cost of restaurants
pay 32.2% more for groceries
|
Birmingham
|
San Francisco
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$3.34
|
$5.06
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$5.25
|
$11.69
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$3.98
|
$5.85
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$4.16
|
$6.26
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$5.48
|
$6.63
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$2.76
|
$3.22
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.83
|
$1.31
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$3.27
|
$2.37
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$2.19
|
$3.23
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.90
|
$1.67
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$2.28
|
$1.81
|
|
Birmingham vs. San Francisco - Cost of groceries
pay 28.3% more for transportation
|
Birmingham
|
San Francisco
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$2.94
|
$4.89
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$80.00
|
$90.00
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$35,026.16
|
$36,753.89
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$15.73
|
$20.31
|
|
Birmingham vs. San Francisco - Cost of transportation
pay 69.3% more for housing
|
Birmingham
|
San Francisco
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$54.28
|
$68.78
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,617.33
|
$3,446.66
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,208.33
|
$2,736.00
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$162.04
|
$179.63
|
|
Birmingham vs. San Francisco - Cost of housing
pay 2.5 times more for childcare
|
Birmingham
|
San Francisco
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$1,233.33
|
$3,236.11
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$18,342.00
|
$42,000.00
|
|
Birmingham vs. San Francisco - Cost of childcare
pay 72.4% more for entertainment and sports
|
Birmingham
|
San Francisco
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$6.00
|
$8.00
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$4.74
|
$5.98
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$7.23
|
$14.00
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$38.75
|
$109.64
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$13.50
|
$17.00
|
|
Birmingham vs. San Francisco - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 16.9% more for clothing
|
Birmingham
|
San Francisco
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$57.33
|
$70.00
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$41.67
|
$48.82
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$103.33
|
$102.00
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$103.00
|
$133.67
|
|
Birmingham vs. San Francisco - 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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