Cost of living comparison
compared to
State College vs. Fort Smith Cost of Living Summary
State College is 32.2% more expensive than Fort Smith.
- Restaurants
-
pay 18.7% less in State College
- Groceries
-
pay 15.9% more in State College
- Transportation
-
pay 55.3% more in State College
- Housing
-
pay 73.2% more in State College
- Childcare
-
pay 16.4% more in State College
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 1.3% more in State College
- Clothing
-
pay 5.1% more in State College
State College vs. Fort Smith Cost Breakdown
If you lived in State College instead of Fort Smith, you would:
pay 18.7% less for restaurants
|
Fort Smith
|
State College
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$20.00
|
$15.00
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$11.50
|
$9.50
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.33
|
$2.46
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.02
|
$1.72
|
|
Fort Smith vs. State College - Cost of restaurants
pay 15.9% more for groceries
|
Fort Smith
|
State College
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$3.35
|
$3.03
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$3.74
|
$4.80
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$3.69
|
$4.35
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$2.94
|
$3.91
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$4.92
|
$4.25
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$2.22
|
$1.60
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.65
|
$0.59
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.13
|
$2.02
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$0.98
|
$1.80
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.88
|
$0.80
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$0.70
|
$1.15
|
|
Fort Smith vs. State College - Cost of groceries
pay 55.3% more for transportation
|
Fort Smith
|
State College
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$2.94
|
$4.17
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$35.00
|
$85.00
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$26,000.00
|
$35,000.00
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$12.75
|
$13.70
|
|
Fort Smith vs. State College - Cost of transportation
pay 73.2% more for housing
|
Fort Smith
|
State College
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$68.50
|
$60.00
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$679.75
|
$1,742.67
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$656.25
|
$1,271.00
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$213.32
|
$121.12
|
|
Fort Smith vs. State College - Cost of housing
pay 16.4% more for childcare
|
Fort Smith
|
State College
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$900.00
|
$1,046.00
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$23,729.17
|
$27,666.67
|
|
Fort Smith vs. State College - Cost of childcare
pay 1.3% more for entertainment and sports
|
Fort Smith
|
State College
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$6.00
|
$6.75
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$5.26
|
$3.50
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$8.21
|
$11.86
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$26.67
|
$25.00
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$13.50
|
$16.50
|
|
Fort Smith vs. State College - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 5.1% more for clothing
|
Fort Smith
|
State College
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$53.80
|
$46.16
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$41.20
|
$40.00
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$93.33
|
$80.00
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$76.66
|
$131.25
|
|
Fort Smith vs. State College - 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 November 2026). How we calculate this
Change currency:
Compare further: Fort Smith vs. State College
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 State College or Fort Smith. It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.