Cost of living comparison
compared to
Los Angeles vs. Boston Cost of Living Summary
Los Angeles is 5.4% cheaper than Boston.
- Restaurants
-
pay 0.4% more in Los Angeles
- Groceries
-
pay 5.3% less in Los Angeles
- Transportation
-
pay 11.9% more in Los Angeles
- Housing
-
pay 13.2% less in Los Angeles
- Childcare
-
pay 19.3% less in Los Angeles
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 7.6% less in Los Angeles
- Clothing
-
pay 5.0% less in Los Angeles
The cost of transportation and restaurants in Los Angeles are more expensive than in Boston. Expenses including childcare, housing, entertainment and sports, groceries, and clothing are lower in Los Angeles.
Los Angeles vs. Boston Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Los Angeles instead of Boston, you would:
pay 0.4% more for restaurants
|
Boston
|
Los Angeles
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$25.00
|
$25.00
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$12.00
|
$13.00
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.87
|
$2.83
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.40
|
$2.26
|
|
Boston vs. Los Angeles - Cost of restaurants
pay 5.3% less for groceries
|
Boston
|
Los Angeles
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$4.16
|
$4.52
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$8.92
|
$6.67
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$4.80
|
$4.71
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$4.93
|
$7.43
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$6.15
|
$7.55
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$2.70
|
$2.60
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$1.00
|
$1.27
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$2.83
|
$2.00
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$3.61
|
$2.17
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$2.09
|
$1.38
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.81
|
$1.22
|
|
Boston vs. Los Angeles - Cost of groceries
pay 11.9% more for transportation
|
Boston
|
Los Angeles
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$3.46
|
$4.78
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$90.00
|
$93.48
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$34,000.00
|
$32,727.50
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$16.52
|
$18.01
|
|
Boston vs. Los Angeles - Cost of transportation
pay 13.2% less for housing
|
Boston
|
Los Angeles
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$77.28
|
$74.01
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$3,451.79
|
$2,536.54
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$2,596.36
|
$1,984.71
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$153.30
|
$155.53
|
|
Boston vs. Los Angeles - Cost of housing
pay 19.3% less for childcare
|
Boston
|
Los Angeles
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$2,793.33
|
$1,762.50
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$27,500.00
|
$27,000.00
|
|
Boston vs. Los Angeles - Cost of childcare
pay 7.6% less for entertainment and sports
|
Boston
|
Los Angeles
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$8.00
|
$8.00
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$5.36
|
$5.76
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$13.00
|
$11.50
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$88.48
|
$47.45
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$15.00
|
$18.00
|
|
Boston vs. Los Angeles - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 5.0% less for clothing
|
Boston
|
Los Angeles
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$69.87
|
$61.25
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$43.75
|
$44.15
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$107.71
|
$100.09
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$152.08
|
$149.85
|
|
Boston vs. Los Angeles - 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: December 2025
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