Cost of living comparison
compared to
Gainesville vs. Eau Claire Cost of Living Summary
Gainesville is 14.4% more expensive than Eau Claire.
- Restaurants
-
pay 11.9% less in Gainesville
- Groceries
-
pay 13.7% less in Gainesville
- Transportation
-
pay 4.4% less in Gainesville
- Housing
-
pay 42.9% more in Gainesville
- Childcare
-
pay 2.5 times more in Gainesville
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 0.1% less in Gainesville
- Clothing
-
pay 22.0% more in Gainesville
Gainesville vs. Eau Claire Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Gainesville instead of Eau Claire, you would:
pay 11.9% less for restaurants
|
Eau Claire
|
Gainesville
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$18.50
|
$15.00
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$10.00
|
$10.00
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.78
|
$2.00
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$1.50
|
$1.50
|
|
Eau Claire vs. Gainesville - Cost of restaurants
pay 13.7% less for groceries
|
Eau Claire
|
Gainesville
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$3.47
|
$2.42
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$6.39
|
$8.26
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$3.00
|
$3.17
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$3.67
|
$3.53
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$5.98
|
$3.47
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$2.13
|
$1.87
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.56
|
$0.55
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.50
|
$1.15
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$2.20
|
$2.12
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.28
|
$1.06
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.38
|
$0.98
|
|
Eau Claire vs. Gainesville - Cost of groceries
pay 4.4% less for transportation
|
Eau Claire
|
Gainesville
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$3.45
|
$3.10
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$50.00
|
?? | |
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$35,957.00
|
$32,000.00
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$20.00
|
$29.35
|
|
Eau Claire vs. Gainesville - Cost of transportation
pay 42.9% more for housing
|
Eau Claire
|
Gainesville
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$69.50
|
$88.33
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,012.50
|
$1,660.67
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$887.50
|
$1,363.33
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$162.10
|
$137.59
|
|
Eau Claire vs. Gainesville - Cost of housing
pay 2.5 times more for childcare
|
Eau Claire
|
Gainesville
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$1,000.00
|
$2,577.11
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$23,429.75
|
$54,725.00
|
|
Eau Claire vs. Gainesville - Cost of childcare
pay 0.1% less for entertainment and sports
|
Eau Claire
|
Gainesville
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$4.00
|
$6.00
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$5.33
|
$5.25
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$10.00
|
$7.50
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$55.00
|
$39.00
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$11.25
|
$13.00
|
|
Eau Claire vs. Gainesville - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 22.0% more for clothing
|
Eau Claire
|
Gainesville
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$48.33
|
$63.75
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$30.00
|
$45.00
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$107.16
|
$100.00
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$83.33
|
$100.00
|
|
Eau Claire vs. Gainesville - Cost of clothing
We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world. Sources: MyLifeElsewhere's cost-of-living dataset (prices updated October 2026). How we calculate this
Change currency:
Compare further: Eau Claire vs. Gainesville
Help us improve these prices
MyLifeElsewhere is a collaborative project. Please enter price information for your location to help assist us in making these comparisons more accurate.
Learn more
Ask the Elsewhere Community
Join the Elsewhere community and ask a question about Gainesville or Eau Claire. It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.