Cost of living comparison

compared to

Rochester vs. Carlow Cost of Living Summary

Rochester is 5.8% cheaper than Carlow.

Restaurants
pay 7.9% less in Rochester
Groceries
pay 10.2% more in Rochester
Transportation
pay 36.6% less in Rochester
Housing
pay 0.2% more in Rochester
Childcare
pay 35.9% more in Rochester
Entertainment and Sports
pay 16.2% less in Rochester
Clothing
pay 6.0% less in Rochester

The cost of childcare, groceries, and housing in Rochester are more expensive than in Carlow. Expenses including transportation, entertainment and sports, restaurants, and clothing are lower in Rochester.

Rochester vs. Carlow Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Rochester instead of Carlow, you would:

pay 7.9% less for restaurants

 
Carlow
Rochester
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant $21.27
€19.00
$20.00
 
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
$13.44
€12.00
$11.00
 
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) $2.72
€2.42
$2.83
 

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pay 10.2% more for groceries

 
Carlow
Rochester
Bread
1 loaf
$1.98
€1.77
$2.95
 
Local cheese (8 oz) $6.71
€5.99
$4.77
 
Milk (1 gallon) $6.08
€5.43
$3.38
 

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pay 36.6% less for transportation

 
Carlow
Rochester
Gasoline (1 gallon) $7.64
€6.82
$3.41
 
Monthly public transit pass ?? $42.00
 
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) $39,000.39
€34,823.33
$35,908.50
 

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pay 0.2% more for housing

 
Carlow
Rochester
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
$50.95
€45.49
$44.00
 
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area $1,427.66
€1,274.76
$1,643.75
 
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center $1,273.70
€1,137.28
$1,300.00
 

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pay 35.9% more for childcare

 
Carlow
Rochester
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly $1,007.76
€899.83
$1,369.17
 
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters ?? $11,812.00
 

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pay 16.2% less for entertainment and sports

 
Carlow
Rochester
Domestic/local beer (1 pint) $7.28
€6.50
$5.00
 
Cappuccino in mid-range area $4.56
€4.07
$6.00
 
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
$18.48
€16.50
$8.89
 

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pay 6.0% less for clothing

 
Carlow
Rochester
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
$83.61
€74.65
$63.33
 
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
$48.18
€43.02
$62.50
 
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
$93.31
€83.32
$73.33
 

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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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