Cost of living comparison

compared to
Mississippi vs. Iowa Cost of Living Summary

Mississippi is 1.8% cheaper than Iowa.

Restaurants
pay 0.6% less in Mississippi
Groceries
pay 5.2% less in Mississippi
Transportation
pay 1.8% more in Mississippi
Housing
pay 0.6% less in Mississippi
Childcare
pay 15.4% more in Mississippi
Entertainment and Sports
pay 15.8% less in Mississippi
Clothing
pay 7.8% less in Mississippi

The cost of childcare and transportation in Mississippi are more expensive than in Iowa. Expenses including entertainment and sports, clothing, groceries, restaurants, and housing are lower in Mississippi.

Mississippi vs. Iowa Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Mississippi instead of Iowa, you would:

pay 0.6% less for restaurants

 
Iowa
Mississippi
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant $15.50
 
$16.21
 
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
$9.86
 
$9.46
 
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) $2.25
 
$2.06
 

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pay 5.2% less for groceries

 
Iowa
Mississippi
Bread
1 loaf
$2.75
 
$2.75
 
Local cheese (8 oz) $5.26
 
$5.60
 
Milk (1 gallon) $3.55
 
$3.80
 

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pay 1.8% more for transportation

 
Iowa
Mississippi
Gasoline (1 gallon) $3.26
 
$2.81
 
Monthly public transit pass $41.60
 
$40.67
 
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) $28,209.92
 
$37,721.76
 

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pay 0.6% less for housing

 
Iowa
Mississippi
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
$68.83
 
$68.08
 
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area $1,149.79
 
$1,083.04
 
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center $848.38
 
$969.79
 

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pay 15.4% more for childcare

 
Iowa
Mississippi
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly $1,043.98
 
$1,753.67
 
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters $19,039.50
 
$11,930.57
 

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pay 15.8% less for entertainment and sports

 
Iowa
Mississippi
Domestic/local beer (1 pint) $4.95
 
$4.43
 
Cappuccino in mid-range area $5.14
 
$4.93
 
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
$8.68
 
$8.53
 

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pay 7.8% less for clothing

 
Iowa
Mississippi
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
$50.44
 
$37.46
 
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
$39.50
 
$42.86
 
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
$83.35
 
$80.22
 

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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: February 2025
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