Cost of living comparison

United States

compared to

Iceland

Reykjavik vs. Independence Cost of Living Summary

Reykjavik is 63.5% more expensive than Independence.

Restaurants: pay 70.4% more in Reykjavik
Groceries: pay 31.2% more in Reykjavik
Transportation: pay 81.5% more in Reykjavik
Housing: pay 77.3% more in Reykjavik
Childcare: pay 27.5% more in Reykjavik
Entertainment and Sports: pay 52.1% more in Reykjavik
Clothing: pay 2.0 times more in Reykjavik

The cost of clothing, transportation, housing, restaurants, entertainment and sports, and groceries in Reykjavik are more expensive than in Independence. Notably, clothing, transportation, and housing are significantly more expensive in Reykjavik.

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Reykjavik vs. Independence Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Reykjavik instead of Independence, you would:

Display currency: USD

pay 70.4% more for restaurants

	Independence	Reykjavik
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$20.00	$31.06 ISK3,813	+55.3%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$12.50	$26.97 ISK3,312	+115.8%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$2.67	$3.31 ISK407	+24.3%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$2.00	$3.11 ISK381	+55.3%
Average			+70.4%

Independence vs. Reykjavik - Cost of restaurants

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pay 31.2% more for groceries

	Independence	Reykjavik
Bread 1 loaf	$3.23	$4.19 ISK515	+29.7%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$5.64	$10.93 ISK1,342	+93.9%
Milk (1 gallon)	$4.25	$7.78 ISK955	+83.0%
Eggs 1 dozen	$4.25	$7.08 ISK869	+66.5%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$4.39	$11.00 ISK1,351	+150.8%
Apples (1 lb)	$2.01	$1.50 ISK185	-25.3%
Bananas (1 lb)	$0.72	$1.27 ISK156	+77.1%
Oranges (1 lb)	$2.01	$1.46 ISK179	-27.5%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$1.93	$2.93 ISK360	+51.7%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$1.43	$1.78 ISK218	+24.3%
Onions (1 lb)	$1.33	$0.76 ISK93	-43.1%
Average			+31.2%

Independence vs. Reykjavik - Cost of groceries

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pay 81.5% more for transportation

	Independence	Reykjavik
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$3.79	$7.76 ISK953	+105.1%
Monthly public transit pass	??	$94.80 ISK11,641
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$35,052.00	$50,588.43 ISK6M	+44.3%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$12.44	$29.26 ISK3,593	+135.2%
Average			+81.5%

Independence vs. Reykjavik - Cost of transportation

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pay 77.3% more for housing

	Independence	Reykjavik
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$72.80	$86.01 ISK10,561	+18.1%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$1,024.00	$2,522.88 ISK310K	+146.4%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$853.67	$2,032.25 ISK250K	+138.1%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$191.18	$73.44 ISK9,018	-61.6%
Average			+77.3%

Independence vs. Reykjavik - Cost of housing

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pay 27.5% more for childcare

	Independence	Reykjavik
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$980.50	$1,185.23 ISK146K	+20.9%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$19,239.33	$25,853.51 ISK3M	+34.4%
Average			+27.5%

Independence vs. Reykjavik - Cost of childcare

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pay 52.1% more for entertainment and sports

	Independence	Reykjavik
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$7.00	$13.89 ISK1,706	+98.5%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$5.09	$6.74 ISK828	+32.4%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$8.03	$13.89 ISK1,706	+73.0%
Monthly membership at local gym	??	$100.25 ISK12,310
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$15.00	$19.57 ISK2,403	+30.5%
Average			+52.1%

Independence vs. Reykjavik - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 2.0 times more for clothing

	Independence	Reykjavik
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$58.65	$149.01 ISK18,297	+154.1%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$39.56	$65.79 ISK8,078	+66.3%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$95.52	$181.84 ISK22,328	+90.4%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$122.17	$248.81 ISK30,551	+103.7%
Average			+101.2%

Independence vs. Reykjavik - Cost of clothing

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We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world. Sources: MyLifeElsewhere's cost-of-living dataset (prices updated November 2026). How we calculate this

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