Cost of living comparison
compared to
Sacramento vs. Fresno Cost of Living Summary
Sacramento is 21.9% more expensive than Fresno.
- Restaurants
-
pay 4.7% less in Sacramento
- Groceries
-
pay 40.5% more in Sacramento
- Transportation
-
pay 25.9% more in Sacramento
- Housing
-
pay 8.2% more in Sacramento
- Childcare
-
pay 81.2% more in Sacramento
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 6.6% less in Sacramento
- Clothing
-
pay 8.8% more in Sacramento
The cost of childcare, groceries, transportation, clothing, and housing in Sacramento are more expensive than in Fresno. Expenses including entertainment and sports and restaurants are lower in Sacramento. Notably, childcare is significantly more expensive in Sacramento.
Sacramento vs. Fresno Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Sacramento instead of Fresno, you would:
pay 4.7% less for restaurants
|
Fresno
|
Sacramento
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$21.00
|
$20.00
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$11.50
|
$11.00
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.77
|
$2.53
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.05
|
$2.04
|
|
Fresno vs. Sacramento - Cost of restaurants
pay 40.5% more for groceries
|
Fresno
|
Sacramento
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$2.94
|
$4.54
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$5.18
|
$8.13
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$3.81
|
$4.45
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$4.59
|
$5.03
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$4.17
|
$7.43
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$2.13
|
$2.36
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.95
|
$0.94
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.69
|
$1.93
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$1.59
|
$3.08
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.78
|
$1.70
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$0.96
|
$2.07
|
|
Fresno vs. Sacramento - Cost of groceries
pay 25.9% more for transportation
|
Fresno
|
Sacramento
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$4.66
|
$4.75
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$45.00
|
$100.00
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$37,201.87
|
$36,753.89
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$23.40
|
$18.91
|
|
Fresno vs. Sacramento - Cost of transportation
pay 8.2% more for housing
|
Fresno
|
Sacramento
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$83.57
|
$74.65
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,525.00
|
$2,061.79
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,516.50
|
$1,652.79
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$273.36
|
$270.98
|
|
Fresno vs. Sacramento - Cost of housing
pay 81.2% more for childcare
|
Fresno
|
Sacramento
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$975.00
|
$1,450.83
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$13,000.00
|
$27,750.00
|
|
Fresno vs. Sacramento - Cost of childcare
pay 6.6% less for entertainment and sports
|
Fresno
|
Sacramento
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$8.00
|
$8.00
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$5.08
|
$5.67
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$12.00
|
$12.25
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$78.33
|
$49.46
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$15.00
|
$14.50
|
|
Fresno vs. Sacramento - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 8.8% more for clothing
|
Fresno
|
Sacramento
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$58.33
|
$58.75
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$40.00
|
$54.83
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$80.00
|
$93.07
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$160.00
|
$130.00
|
|
Fresno vs. Sacramento - 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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