Cost of living comparison
compared to
California vs. Colorado Cost of Living Summary
California is 12.0% more expensive than Colorado.
California vs. Colorado Cost Breakdown
If you lived in California instead of Colorado, you would:
pay 2.6% more for restaurants
Colorado | California | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant | $20.33 | $21.84 | |
| Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar | $11.50 | $12.33 | |
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) | $2.78 | $2.79 | |
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) | $2.28 | $2.17 | |
Colorado vs. California - Cost of restaurants
pay 12.1% more for groceries
Colorado | California | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Bread 1 loaf | $3.51 | $4.20 | |
| Local cheese (8 oz) | $6.35 | $6.77 | |
| Milk (1 gallon) | $3.88 | $4.73 | |
| Eggs 1 dozen | $4.83 | $5.14 | |
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) | $5.70 | $6.05 | |
| Apples (1 lb) | $2.28 | $2.30 | |
| Bananas (1 lb) | $0.70 | $0.92 | |
| Oranges (1 lb) | $1.84 | $1.91 | |
| Tomatoes (1 lb) | $2.18 | $2.38 | |
| Potatoes (1 lb) | $1.33 | $1.50 | |
| Onions (1 lb) | $1.23 | $1.41 | |
Colorado vs. California - Cost of groceries
pay 12.9% more for transportation
Colorado | California | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) | $3.09 | $4.72 | |
| Monthly public transit pass | $87.89 | $63.04 | |
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) | $33,264.77 | $30,529.84 | |
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) | $15.83 | $21.43 | |
Colorado vs. California - Cost of transportation
pay 14.8% more for housing
Colorado | California | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl | $71.31 | $67.96 | |
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area | $1,998.04 | $2,385.40 | |
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center | $1,754.04 | $2,043.56 | |
| Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating | $134.17 | $171.94 | |
Colorado vs. California - Cost of housing
pay 34.6% more for childcare
Colorado | California | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly | $1,452.57 | $1,633.13 | |
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters | $19,338.92 | $30,339.97 | |
Colorado vs. California - Cost of childcare
pay 11.7% more for entertainment and sports
Colorado | California | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) | $6.42 | $7.31 | |
| Cappuccino in mid-range area | $5.34 | $5.58 | |
| Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar | $10.12 | $10.92 | |
| Monthly membership at local gym | $53.97 | $68.02 | |
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema | $14.12 | $14.99 | |
Colorado vs. California - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 4.5% less for clothing
Colorado | California | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Regular jeans Levi's brand | $57.93 | $56.47 | |
| Regular dress from H&M or similar store | $49.63 | $40.47 | |
| Running shoes Nike or Adidas | $88.36 | $87.50 | |
| Men's business shoes (leather) | $115.50 | $119.94 | |
Colorado vs. California - 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: June 2026
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