Cost of living comparison
compared to
Iowa vs. France Cost of Living Summary
Iowa is 6.6% more expensive than France overall.
- Restaurants
-
pay 11.1% less in Iowa
- Groceries
-
pay 1.6% more in Iowa
- Transportation
-
pay 35.0% less in Iowa
- Housing
-
pay 36.9% more in Iowa
- Childcare
-
pay 65.6% more in Iowa
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 8.1% more in Iowa
- Clothing
-
pay 19.8% less in Iowa
The cost of childcare, housing, entertainment and sports, and groceries in Iowa are more expensive than in France. Expenses including transportation, clothing, and restaurants are lower in Iowa.
Iowa vs. France Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Iowa instead of France, you would:
pay 11.1% less for restaurants
|
France
|
Iowa
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$17.40
€15.00
|
$15.83
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$12.58
€10.85
|
$10.57
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.85
€2.46
|
$2.46
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$1.92
€1.66
|
$1.82
|
|
France vs. Iowa - Cost of restaurants
pay 1.6% more for groceries
|
France
|
Iowa
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$2.00
€1.72
|
$2.77
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$9.90
€8.53
|
$5.89
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$5.07
€4.37
|
$3.33
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$4.06
€3.50
|
$3.30
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$6.32
€5.45
|
$4.57
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.38
€1.19
|
$1.96
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$1.04
€0.89
|
$0.65
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.32
€1.14
|
$1.93
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$1.53
€1.32
|
$1.93
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.96
€0.83
|
$0.99
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.09
€0.94
|
$1.30
|
|
France vs. Iowa - Cost of groceries
pay 35.0% less for transportation
|
France
|
Iowa
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$7.83
€6.76
|
$3.02
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$55.31
€47.69
|
$38.07
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$35,101.00
€30,268.54
|
$28,093.10
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$21.22
€18.30
|
$15.46
|
|
France vs. Iowa - Cost of transportation
pay 36.9% more for housing
|
France
|
Iowa
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$32.49
€28.01
|
$65.62
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$812.51
€700.65
|
$1,069.66
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$661.67
€570.58
|
$852.78
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$156.40
€134.87
|
$133.13
|
|
France vs. Iowa - Cost of housing
pay 65.6% more for childcare
|
France
|
Iowa
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$772.72
€666.34
|
$1,152.45
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$10,376.63
€8,948.05
|
$18,898.50
|
|
France vs. Iowa - Cost of childcare
pay 8.1% more for entertainment and sports
|
France
|
Iowa
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$7.00
€6.04
|
$4.44
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$3.57
€3.08
|
$5.43
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$13.51
€11.65
|
$8.55
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$39.74
€34.27
|
$63.76
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$13.44
€11.59
|
$13.58
|
|
France vs. Iowa - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 19.8% less for clothing
|
France
|
Iowa
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$95.54
€82.39
|
$55.34
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$41.45
€35.75
|
$41.65
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$99.85
€86.11
|
$81.56
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$132.46
€114.22
|
$106.86
|
|
France vs. Iowa - 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
Change currency:
Compare countries by overall cost of living
See the
cost of living in France vs. United States.
This provides a comparison of the average cost of living from cities within France and United States.
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 Iowa or France. It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.