Cost of living comparison
compared to
Iowa vs. Germany Cost of Living Summary
Iowa is 3.8% more expensive than Germany overall.
- Restaurants
-
pay 19.2% less in Iowa
- Groceries
-
pay 12.3% more in Iowa
- Transportation
-
pay 38.7% less in Iowa
- Housing
-
pay 7.9% more in Iowa
- Childcare
-
pay 73.1% more in Iowa
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 13.4% more in Iowa
- Clothing
-
pay 22.5% less in Iowa
The cost of childcare, entertainment and sports, groceries, and housing in Iowa are more expensive than in Germany. Expenses including transportation, clothing, and restaurants are lower in Iowa.
Iowa vs. Germany Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Iowa instead of Germany, you would:
pay 19.2% less for restaurants
|
Germany
|
Iowa
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$16.25
€14.01
|
$15.83
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$11.88
€10.24
|
$10.57
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$3.29
€2.84
|
$2.46
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.93
€2.53
|
$1.82
|
|
Germany vs. Iowa - Cost of restaurants
pay 12.3% more for groceries
|
Germany
|
Iowa
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$2.25
€1.94
|
$2.77
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$7.39
€6.37
|
$5.89
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$4.79
€4.13
|
$3.33
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$3.84
€3.31
|
$3.30
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$6.58
€5.67
|
$4.57
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.45
€1.25
|
$1.96
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.82
€0.71
|
$0.65
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.05
€0.91
|
$1.93
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$2.20
€1.90
|
$1.93
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.71
€0.61
|
$0.99
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$0.72
€0.62
|
$1.30
|
|
Germany vs. Iowa - Cost of groceries
pay 38.7% less for transportation
|
Germany
|
Iowa
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$7.59
€6.55
|
$3.02
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$62.94
€54.28
|
$38.07
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$31,651.13
€27,293.63
|
$28,093.10
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$27.45
€23.67
|
$15.46
|
|
Germany vs. Iowa - Cost of transportation
pay 7.9% more for housing
|
Germany
|
Iowa
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$48.64
€41.94
|
$65.62
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$874.65
€754.23
|
$1,069.66
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$695.68
€599.90
|
$852.78
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$258.10
€222.57
|
$133.13
|
|
Germany vs. Iowa - Cost of housing
pay 73.1% more for childcare
|
Germany
|
Iowa
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$497.10
€428.67
|
$1,152.45
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$16,538.74
€14,261.81
|
$18,898.50
|
|
Germany vs. Iowa - Cost of childcare
pay 13.4% more for entertainment and sports
|
Germany
|
Iowa
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$5.05
€4.36
|
$4.44
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$3.95
€3.40
|
$5.43
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$9.74
€8.40
|
$8.55
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$40.02
€34.51
|
$63.76
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$14.41
€12.42
|
$13.58
|
|
Germany vs. Iowa - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 22.5% less for clothing
|
Germany
|
Iowa
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$91.81
€79.17
|
$55.34
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$46.05
€39.71
|
$41.65
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$102.53
€88.42
|
$81.56
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$134.07
€115.61
|
$106.86
|
|
Germany 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
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