Rotterdam vs. Detroit Cost of Living Summary

Rotterdam is 19.7% more expensive than Detroit.

Restaurants
pay 16.1% more in Rotterdam
Groceries
pay 13.2% less in Rotterdam
Transportation
pay 47.4% more in Rotterdam
Housing
pay 40.7% more in Rotterdam
Childcare
pay 11.9% less in Rotterdam
Entertainment and Sports
pay 12.2% more in Rotterdam
Clothing
pay 19.4% more in Rotterdam

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

Rotterdam vs. Detroit Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Rotterdam instead of Detroit, you would:

pay 16.1% more for restaurants

 
Detroit
Rotterdam
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant $18.00
 
$20.72
€18.50
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
$13.00
 
$13.44
€12.00
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) $3.17
 
$3.86
€3.45

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pay 13.2% less for groceries

 
Detroit
Rotterdam
Bread
1 loaf
$3.53
 
$2.37
€2.12
Local cheese (8 oz) $6.78
 
$6.02
€5.37
Milk (1 gallon) $3.84
 
$5.52
€4.93

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pay 47.4% more for transportation

 
Detroit
Rotterdam
Gasoline (1 gallon) $4.22
 
$9.75
€8.71
Monthly public transit pass $120.00
 
$110.85
€98.98
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) $36,033.00
 
$41,419.02
€36,982.92

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pay 40.7% more for housing

 
Detroit
Rotterdam
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
$68.92
 
$54.94
€49.05
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area $1,520.00
 
$1,961.78
€1,751.66
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center $922.33
 
$1,523.86
€1,360.65

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pay 11.9% less for childcare

 
Detroit
Rotterdam
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly $1,368.37
 
$2,681.14
€2,393.99
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters $32,070.71
 
$12,697.80
€11,337.83

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pay 12.2% more for entertainment and sports

 
Detroit
Rotterdam
Domestic/local beer (1 pint) $8.00
 
$7.05
€6.30
Cappuccino in mid-range area $5.61
 
$4.38
€3.91
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
$10.40
 
$14.56
€13.00

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pay 19.4% more for clothing

 
Detroit
Rotterdam
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
$59.09
 
$93.71
€83.68
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
$41.44
 
$39.14
€34.94
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
$96.30
 
$109.92
€98.15

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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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