Cost of living comparison
compared to
New Jersey vs. District of Columbia Cost of Living Summary
New Jersey is 9.2% cheaper than District of Columbia.
- Restaurants
-
pay 15.6% less in New Jersey
- Groceries
-
pay 0.6% less in New Jersey
- Transportation
-
pay 12.9% more in New Jersey
- Housing
-
pay 11.0% less in New Jersey
- Childcare
-
pay 27.9% less in New Jersey
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 15.9% less in New Jersey
- Clothing
-
pay 6.1% less in New Jersey
Expenses including childcare, entertainment and sports, restaurants, housing, clothing, and groceries are lower in New Jersey.
New Jersey vs. District of Columbia Cost Breakdown
If you lived in New Jersey instead of District of Columbia, you would:
pay 15.6% less for restaurants
|
District of Columbia
|
New Jersey
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$25.00
|
$19.95
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$12.00
|
$12.40
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$3.20
|
$2.60
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.79
|
$2.04
|
|
District of Columbia vs. New Jersey - Cost of restaurants
pay 0.6% less for groceries
|
District of Columbia
|
New Jersey
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$4.43
|
$4.17
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$8.04
|
$8.09
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$4.19
|
$4.78
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$4.55
|
$5.24
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$7.74
|
$5.96
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$2.95
|
$2.76
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.92
|
$0.98
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$2.20
|
$2.20
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$3.00
|
$2.62
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.35
|
$1.44
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.64
|
$1.60
|
|
District of Columbia vs. New Jersey - Cost of groceries
pay 12.9% more for transportation
|
District of Columbia
|
New Jersey
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$3.53
|
$3.24
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$77.50
|
$116.02
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$35,699.74
|
$32,841.50
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$16.73
|
$19.75
|
|
District of Columbia vs. New Jersey - Cost of transportation
pay 11.0% less for housing
|
District of Columbia
|
New Jersey
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$69.41
|
$62.68
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$2,568.48
|
$2,279.92
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$2,088.16
|
$1,885.98
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$146.54
|
$126.74
|
|
District of Columbia vs. New Jersey - Cost of housing
pay 27.9% less for childcare
|
District of Columbia
|
New Jersey
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$2,650.00
|
$2,023.96
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$40,166.67
|
$27,267.62
|
|
District of Columbia vs. New Jersey - Cost of childcare
pay 15.9% less for entertainment and sports
|
District of Columbia
|
New Jersey
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$8.00
|
$6.95
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$6.07
|
$5.20
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$13.00
|
$12.79
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$103.76
|
$52.90
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$16.75
|
$16.52
|
|
District of Columbia vs. New Jersey - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 6.1% less for clothing
|
District of Columbia
|
New Jersey
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$76.00
|
$57.64
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$48.40
|
$49.26
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$104.31
|
$99.28
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$133.22
|
$136.81
|
|
District of Columbia vs. New Jersey - 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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