Cost of living comparison
compared to
Des Moines vs. Ecuador Cost of Living Summary
Des Moines is 2.4 times more expensive than Ecuador overall.
- Restaurants
-
pay 3.2 times more in Des Moines
- Groceries
-
pay 98.7% more in Des Moines
- Transportation
-
pay 39.2% more in Des Moines
- Housing
-
pay 2.9 times more in Des Moines
- Childcare
-
pay 4.1 times more in Des Moines
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 2.1 times more in Des Moines
- Clothing
-
pay 13.9% more in Des Moines
The cost of childcare, restaurants, housing, entertainment and sports, groceries, and transportation in Des Moines are more expensive than in Ecuador. Notably, childcare, restaurants, and housing are significantly more expensive in Des Moines.
Des Moines vs. Ecuador Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Des Moines instead of Ecuador, you would:
pay 3.2 times more for restaurants
|
Ecuador
|
Des Moines
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$3.56
|
$17.00
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$6.93
|
$12.00
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$0.91
|
$2.61
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$0.63
|
$2.15
|
|
Ecuador vs. Des Moines - Cost of restaurants
pay 98.7% more for groceries
|
Ecuador
|
Des Moines
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$1.62
|
$3.03
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$3.11
|
$6.36
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$4.00
|
$3.56
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$2.28
|
$3.61
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$2.55
|
$3.67
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$0.83
|
$1.77
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.49
|
$0.65
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$0.52
|
$1.66
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$0.51
|
$1.59
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.57
|
$0.75
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$0.46
|
$1.36
|
|
Ecuador vs. Des Moines - Cost of groceries
pay 39.2% more for transportation
|
Ecuador
|
Des Moines
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$2.52
|
$2.93
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$26.64
|
$58.00
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$23,000.00
|
$26,000.00
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$10.89
|
$11.94
|
|
Ecuador vs. Des Moines - Cost of transportation
pay 2.9 times more for housing
|
Ecuador
|
Des Moines
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$29.34
|
$57.86
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$360.30
|
$1,214.00
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$278.34
|
$912.50
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$38.16
|
$108.83
|
|
Ecuador vs. Des Moines - Cost of housing
pay 4.1 times more for childcare
|
Ecuador
|
Des Moines
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$233.05
|
$1,369.17
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$5,103.33
|
$11,812.00
|
|
Ecuador vs. Des Moines - Cost of childcare
pay 2.1 times more for entertainment and sports
|
Ecuador
|
Des Moines
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$2.01
|
$5.00
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$2.43
|
$5.47
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$5.75
|
$7.14
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$32.69
|
$71.67
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$6.67
|
$15.00
|
|
Ecuador vs. Des Moines - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 13.9% more for clothing
|
Ecuador
|
Des Moines
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$55.39
|
$56.67
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$42.48
|
$41.00
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$97.41
|
$73.00
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$76.05
|
$138.33
|
|
Ecuador vs. Des Moines - 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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