Cost of living comparison
compared to
San Francisco vs. Idaho Falls Cost of Living Summary
San Francisco is 78.3% more expensive than Idaho Falls.
- Restaurants
-
pay 51.4% more in San Francisco
- Groceries
-
pay 94.4% more in San Francisco
- Transportation
-
pay 17.6% more in San Francisco
- Housing
-
pay 2.1 times more in San Francisco
- Childcare
-
pay 2.5 times more in San Francisco
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 80.8% more in San Francisco
- Clothing
-
pay 41.4% more in San Francisco
San Francisco vs. Idaho Falls Cost Breakdown
If you lived in San Francisco instead of Idaho Falls, you would:
pay 51.4% more for restaurants
|
Idaho Falls
|
San Francisco
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$18.00
|
$27.15
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$10.00
|
$15.00
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.24
|
$3.16
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$1.58
|
$2.70
|
|
Idaho Falls vs. San Francisco - Cost of restaurants
pay 94.4% more for groceries
|
Idaho Falls
|
San Francisco
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$3.85
|
$5.31
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$5.94
|
$8.16
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$2.80
|
$6.63
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$4.17
|
$4.93
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$3.00
|
$6.99
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$0.98
|
$2.78
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.56
|
$1.30
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$0.95
|
$2.00
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$0.95
|
$3.11
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.75
|
$1.34
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.12
|
$1.67
|
|
Idaho Falls vs. San Francisco - Cost of groceries
pay 17.6% more for transportation
|
Idaho Falls
|
San Francisco
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$4.09
|
$5.78
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass | ?? |
$95.00
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$36,628.00
|
$36,998.00
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$20.90
|
$20.39
|
|
Idaho Falls vs. San Francisco - Cost of transportation
pay 2.1 times more for housing
|
Idaho Falls
|
San Francisco
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$64.50
|
$76.29
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,322.33
|
$3,735.00
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,276.67
|
$2,618.75
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$129.69
|
$164.32
|
|
Idaho Falls vs. San Francisco - Cost of housing
pay 2.5 times more for childcare
|
Idaho Falls
|
San Francisco
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$950.00
|
$2,942.94
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$20,595.56
|
$42,562.50
|
|
Idaho Falls vs. San Francisco - Cost of childcare
pay 80.8% more for entertainment and sports
|
Idaho Falls
|
San Francisco
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$4.00
|
$8.00
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$5.03
|
$5.97
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$10.16
|
$12.00
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$38.00
|
$121.54
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$11.50
|
$18.00
|
|
Idaho Falls vs. San Francisco - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 41.4% more for clothing
|
Idaho Falls
|
San Francisco
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$42.00
|
$76.17
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$45.52
|
$47.67
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$70.00
|
$101.08
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$95.00
|
$138.64
|
|
Idaho Falls vs. San Francisco - Cost of clothing
We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world. Sources: MyLifeElsewhere's cost-of-living dataset (prices updated October 2026). How we calculate this
Change currency:
Compare further: Idaho Falls vs. San Francisco
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 San Francisco or Idaho Falls. It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.