Cost of living comparison
compared to
Silver Spring vs. Chicago Cost of Living Summary
Silver Spring is 4.4% more expensive than Chicago.
- Restaurants
-
pay 2.9% more in Silver Spring
- Groceries
-
pay 29.5% more in Silver Spring
- Transportation
-
pay 28.6% more in Silver Spring
- Housing
-
pay 18.7% less in Silver Spring
- Childcare
-
pay 31.1% more in Silver Spring
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 23.8% less in Silver Spring
- Clothing
-
pay 19.1% less in Silver Spring
Silver Spring vs. Chicago Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Silver Spring instead of Chicago, you would:
pay 2.9% more for restaurants
|
Chicago
|
Silver Spring
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$20.50
|
$20.00
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$12.00
|
$13.00
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.96
|
$2.91
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.33
|
$2.50
|
|
Chicago vs. Silver Spring - Cost of restaurants
pay 29.5% more for groceries
|
Chicago
|
Silver Spring
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$4.01
|
$3.78
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$7.05
|
$9.18
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$4.30
|
$3.58
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$5.02
|
$5.99
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$6.55
|
$6.49
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$2.31
|
$3.45
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.79
|
$0.79
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.85
|
$3.67
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$2.09
|
$3.67
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.16
|
$1.50
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.26
|
$1.83
|
|
Chicago vs. Silver Spring - Cost of groceries
pay 28.6% more for transportation
|
Chicago
|
Silver Spring
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$3.81
|
$3.16
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$75.00
|
$176.00
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$35,691.85
|
$34,231.99
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$14.43
|
$14.58
|
|
Chicago vs. Silver Spring - Cost of transportation
pay 18.7% less for housing
|
Chicago
|
Silver Spring
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$65.83
|
$65.00
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$2,418.00
|
$1,945.00
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,692.50
|
$1,150.00
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$141.41
|
$110.88
|
|
Chicago vs. Silver Spring - Cost of housing
pay 31.1% more for childcare
|
Chicago
|
Silver Spring
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$2,050.00
|
$2,233.33
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$39,114.29
|
$60,000.00
|
|
Chicago vs. Silver Spring - Cost of childcare
pay 23.8% less for entertainment and sports
|
Chicago
|
Silver Spring
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$7.00
|
$6.00
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$5.53
|
$5.29
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$17.00
|
$10.00
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$71.80
|
$33.33
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$18.00
|
$17.00
|
|
Chicago vs. Silver Spring - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 19.1% less for clothing
|
Chicago
|
Silver Spring
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$64.24
|
$46.75
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$49.62
|
$36.33
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$99.48
|
$95.00
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$146.50
|
$120.00
|
|
Chicago vs. Silver Spring - 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: July 2026
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