Cost of living comparison
compared to
South Carolina vs. Houston Cost of Living Summary
South Carolina is 1.9% cheaper than Houston.
- Restaurants
-
pay 0.3% less in South Carolina
- Groceries
-
pay 26.1% more in South Carolina
- Transportation
-
pay 7.7% less in South Carolina
- Housing
-
pay 1.8% less in South Carolina
- Childcare
-
pay 9.8% less in South Carolina
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 13.3% less in South Carolina
- Clothing
-
pay 6.6% less in South Carolina
Expenses including entertainment and sports, childcare, transportation, clothing, housing, and restaurants are lower in South Carolina.
South Carolina vs. Houston Cost Breakdown
If you lived in South Carolina instead of Houston, you would:
pay 0.3% less for restaurants
|
Houston
|
South Carolina
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$20.00
|
$19.17
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$10.00
|
$11.16
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.76
|
$2.65
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.23
|
$2.13
|
|
Houston vs. South Carolina - Cost of restaurants
pay 26.1% more for groceries
|
Houston
|
South Carolina
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$3.23
|
$3.44
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$6.32
|
$5.99
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$3.44
|
$3.54
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$4.35
|
$4.18
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$5.20
|
$5.64
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.88
|
$2.64
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.67
|
$0.76
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.67
|
$2.49
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$1.12
|
$2.31
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.20
|
$1.63
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.05
|
$1.38
|
|
Houston vs. South Carolina - Cost of groceries
pay 7.7% less for transportation
|
Houston
|
South Carolina
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$2.81
|
$2.88
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$75.00
|
$46.17
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$36,278.39
|
$33,190.90
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$14.39
|
$16.34
|
|
Houston vs. South Carolina - Cost of transportation
pay 1.8% less for housing
|
Houston
|
South Carolina
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$70.76
|
$66.47
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,660.33
|
$1,589.94
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,287.77
|
$1,366.92
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$145.65
|
$141.20
|
|
Houston vs. South Carolina - Cost of housing
pay 9.8% less for childcare
|
Houston
|
South Carolina
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$1,258.33
|
$1,346.85
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$26,120.00
|
$19,168.15
|
|
Houston vs. South Carolina - Cost of childcare
pay 13.3% less for entertainment and sports
|
Houston
|
South Carolina
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$6.00
|
$5.29
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$5.41
|
$5.17
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$9.95
|
$7.67
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$37.29
|
$32.75
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$15.00
|
$12.71
|
|
Houston vs. South Carolina - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 6.6% less for clothing
|
Houston
|
South Carolina
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$45.57
|
$50.06
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$44.00
|
$35.86
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$98.95
|
$84.43
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$116.43
|
$112.81
|
|
Houston vs. South Carolina - 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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