Cost of living comparison
compared to
Finland vs. Iowa Cost of Living Summary
Finland is 5.1% more expensive than Iowa.
- Restaurants
-
pay 8.4% more in Finland
- Groceries
-
pay 7.7% less in Finland
- Transportation
-
pay 76.0% more in Finland
- Housing
-
pay 32.1% less in Finland
- Childcare
-
pay 56.3% less in Finland
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 20.6% more in Finland
- Clothing
-
pay 26.5% more in Finland
The cost of transportation, clothing, entertainment and sports, and restaurants in Finland are more expensive than in Iowa. Expenses including childcare, housing, and groceries are lower in Finland. Notably, transportation is significantly more expensive in Finland.
Finland vs. Iowa Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Finland instead of Iowa, you would:
pay 8.4% more for restaurants
|
Iowa
|
Finland
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$15.83
|
$15.68
€13.46
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$10.57
|
$11.56
€9.93
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.46
|
$2.65
€2.28
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$1.82
|
$2.14
€1.83
|
|
Iowa vs. Finland - Cost of restaurants
pay 7.7% less for groceries
|
Iowa
|
Finland
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$2.77
|
$2.47
€2.12
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$5.89
|
$4.19
€3.60
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$3.33
|
$4.85
€4.17
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$3.30
|
$3.24
€2.79
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$4.57
|
$6.13
€5.26
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.96
|
$1.13
€0.97
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.65
|
$0.94
€0.81
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.93
|
$1.05
€0.90
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$1.93
|
$1.90
€1.63
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.99
|
$0.58
€0.50
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.30
|
$0.83
€0.71
|
|
Iowa vs. Finland - Cost of groceries
pay 76.0% more for transportation
|
Iowa
|
Finland
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$3.02
|
$7.96
€6.84
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$38.07
|
$69.84
€59.98
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$28,093.10
|
$34,910.15
€29,981.22
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$15.46
|
$20.49
€17.60
|
|
Iowa vs. Finland - Cost of transportation
pay 32.1% less for housing
|
Iowa
|
Finland
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$65.62
|
$23.03
€19.77
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,069.66
|
$801.83
€688.62
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$852.78
|
$658.48
€565.51
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$133.13
|
$112.00
€96.18
|
|
Iowa vs. Finland - Cost of housing
pay 56.3% less for childcare
|
Iowa
|
Finland
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$1,152.45
|
$333.41
€286.34
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$18,898.50
|
$11,057.05
€9,495.91
|
|
Iowa vs. Finland - Cost of childcare
pay 20.6% more for entertainment and sports
|
Iowa
|
Finland
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$4.44
|
$7.87
€6.76
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$5.43
|
$4.79
€4.12
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$8.55
|
$12.15
€10.44
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$63.76
|
$44.75
€38.43
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$13.58
|
$16.99
€14.59
|
|
Iowa vs. Finland - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 26.5% more for clothing
|
Iowa
|
Finland
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$55.34
|
$93.32
€80.14
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$41.65
|
$37.73
€32.40
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$81.56
|
$96.29
€82.70
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$106.86
|
$137.67
€118.23
|
|
Iowa vs. Finland - 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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