Cost of living comparison
compared to
South Carolina vs. Florida Cost of Living Summary
South Carolina is 6.7% cheaper than Florida.
- Restaurants
-
pay 8.8% less in South Carolina
- Groceries
-
pay 10.8% more in South Carolina
- Transportation
-
pay 6.0% less in South Carolina
- Housing
-
pay 15.8% less in South Carolina
- Childcare
-
pay 1.2% less in South Carolina
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 6.9% less in South Carolina
- Clothing
-
pay 6.8% less in South Carolina
South Carolina vs. Florida Cost Breakdown
If you lived in South Carolina instead of Florida, you would:
pay 8.8% less for restaurants
|
Florida
|
South Carolina
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$22.12
|
$18.26
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$11.51
|
$11.29
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.72
|
$2.75
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.13
|
$2.14
|
|
Florida vs. South Carolina - Cost of restaurants
pay 10.8% more for groceries
|
Florida
|
South Carolina
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$3.68
|
$3.57
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$6.24
|
$6.52
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$4.01
|
$3.54
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$4.08
|
$4.26
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$5.39
|
$6.42
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$2.37
|
$2.66
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.74
|
$0.75
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.86
|
$2.55
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$2.06
|
$2.58
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.40
|
$1.70
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.47
|
$1.72
|
|
Florida vs. South Carolina - Cost of groceries
pay 6.0% less for transportation
|
Florida
|
South Carolina
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$3.67
|
$3.43
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$61.90
|
$57.12
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$35,017.93
|
$33,498.60
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$16.97
|
$16.31
|
|
Florida vs. South Carolina - Cost of transportation
pay 15.8% less for housing
|
Florida
|
South Carolina
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$73.00
|
$69.68
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,897.60
|
$1,550.07
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,578.21
|
$1,238.74
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$146.96
|
$155.49
|
|
Florida vs. South Carolina - Cost of housing
pay 1.2% less for childcare
|
Florida
|
South Carolina
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$1,132.71
|
$1,378.67
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$22,290.86
|
$17,884.58
|
|
Florida vs. South Carolina - Cost of childcare
pay 6.9% less for entertainment and sports
|
Florida
|
South Carolina
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$5.89
|
$5.65
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$5.16
|
$5.60
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$8.78
|
$8.89
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$42.25
|
$34.64
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$14.64
|
$12.90
|
|
Florida vs. South Carolina - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 6.8% less for clothing
|
Florida
|
South Carolina
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$53.85
|
$49.47
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$42.77
|
$37.12
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$90.40
|
$89.72
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$111.20
|
$105.99
|
|
Florida vs. South Carolina - 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: Florida vs. South Carolina
Salary Calculator · Free tool
What salary would you need in South Carolina?
→
Quality of Life Comparison · 13 statistics
Make 13.4% less money in South Carolina
→
Size Comparison · See true size
Florida is about 1.8 times bigger than South Carolina.
→
Moving from Florida to South Carolina · Cost, visas & climate
Compare cost of living, salary and climate.
→
Explore more U.S. state comparisons
See how other U.S. states compare.
Browse all state comparisons.
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 South Carolina or Florida. It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.