Cost of living comparison
compared to
Irvine vs. Houston Cost of Living Summary
Irvine is 25.4% more expensive than Houston.
Irvine vs. Houston Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Irvine instead of Houston, you would:
pay 5.5% more for restaurants
|
Houston
|
Irvine
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$20.00
|
$25.00
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$10.00
|
$11.50
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.76
|
$2.67
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.23
|
$1.90
|
|
Houston vs. Irvine - Cost of restaurants
pay 39.1% more for groceries
|
Houston
|
Irvine
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$3.23
|
$5.58
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$6.32
|
$6.22
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$3.44
|
$4.62
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$4.35
|
$4.50
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$5.20
|
$9.15
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.88
|
$2.90
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.67
|
$0.74
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.67
|
$1.75
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$1.12
|
$2.48
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.20
|
$1.47
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.05
|
$1.36
|
|
Houston vs. Irvine - Cost of groceries
pay 19.7% more for transportation
|
Houston
|
Irvine
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$2.81
|
$4.76
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$75.00
|
$72.00
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$36,278.39
|
$28,500.00
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$14.39
|
$19.41
|
|
Houston vs. Irvine - Cost of transportation
pay 39.9% more for housing
|
Houston
|
Irvine
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$70.76
|
$74.25
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,660.33
|
$2,538.33
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,287.77
|
$2,525.00
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$145.65
|
$153.80
|
|
Houston vs. Irvine - Cost of housing
pay 50.1% more for childcare
|
Houston
|
Irvine
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$1,258.33
|
$1,841.67
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$26,120.00
|
$40,160.00
|
|
Houston vs. Irvine - Cost of childcare
pay 9.9% more for entertainment and sports
|
Houston
|
Irvine
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$6.00
|
$8.00
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$5.41
|
$5.55
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$9.95
|
$9.63
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$37.29
|
$44.17
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$15.00
|
$14.75
|
|
Houston vs. Irvine - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 13.9% more for clothing
|
Houston
|
Irvine
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$45.57
|
$69.00
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$44.00
|
$40.75
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$98.95
|
$77.00
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$116.43
|
$156.00
|
|
Houston vs. Irvine - 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: October 2026
Change currency:
Compare further: Houston vs. Irvine
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 Irvine or Houston. It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.