Cost of living comparison
compared to
Hawaii vs. Iowa Cost of Living Summary
Hawaii is 47.0% more expensive than Iowa.
- Restaurants
-
pay 47.6% more in Hawaii
- Groceries
-
pay 2.1 times more in Hawaii
- Transportation
-
pay 49.3% more in Hawaii
- Housing
-
pay 73.0% more in Hawaii
- Childcare
-
pay 15.1% more in Hawaii
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 22.9% more in Hawaii
- Clothing
-
pay 10.0% more in Hawaii
The cost of groceries, housing, transportation, restaurants, entertainment and sports, and childcare in Hawaii are more expensive than in Iowa. Notably, groceries is significantly more expensive in Hawaii.
Hawaii vs. Iowa Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Hawaii instead of Iowa, you would:
pay 47.6% more for restaurants
|
Iowa
|
Hawaii
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$15.83
|
$31.67
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$10.57
|
$13.92
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.46
|
$2.92
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$1.82
|
$2.55
|
|
Iowa vs. Hawaii - Cost of restaurants
pay 2.1 times more for groceries
|
Iowa
|
Hawaii
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$2.77
|
$7.40
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$5.89
|
$9.55
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$3.33
|
$7.31
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$3.30
|
$8.02
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$4.57
|
$7.30
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.96
|
$3.53
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.65
|
$1.51
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.93
|
$3.45
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$1.93
|
$4.35
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.99
|
$2.48
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.30
|
$2.69
|
|
Iowa vs. Hawaii - Cost of groceries
pay 49.3% more for transportation
|
Iowa
|
Hawaii
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$3.02
|
$4.67
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$38.07
|
$73.40
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$28,093.10
|
$34,191.72
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$15.46
|
$19.78
|
|
Iowa vs. Hawaii - Cost of transportation
pay 73.0% more for housing
|
Iowa
|
Hawaii
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$65.62
|
$62.43
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,069.66
|
$2,196.87
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$852.78
|
$1,945.73
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$133.13
|
$217.24
|
|
Iowa vs. Hawaii - Cost of housing
pay 15.1% more for childcare
|
Iowa
|
Hawaii
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$1,152.45
|
$1,529.17
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$18,898.50
|
$18,420.00
|
|
Iowa vs. Hawaii - Cost of childcare
pay 22.9% more for entertainment and sports
|
Iowa
|
Hawaii
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$4.44
|
$6.50
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$5.43
|
$6.51
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$8.55
|
$12.87
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$63.76
|
$59.64
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$13.58
|
$14.16
|
|
Iowa vs. Hawaii - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 10.0% more for clothing
|
Iowa
|
Hawaii
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$55.34
|
$56.33
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$41.65
|
$42.33
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$81.56
|
$96.67
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$106.86
|
$126.17
|
|
Iowa vs. Hawaii - 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
Change currency:
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 Hawaii or Iowa. It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.