Cost of living comparison
compared to
Pennsylvania vs. Iowa Cost of Living Summary
Pennsylvania is 15.6% more expensive than Iowa.
- Restaurants
-
pay 3.7% more in Pennsylvania
- Groceries
-
pay 24.1% more in Pennsylvania
- Transportation
-
pay 27.8% more in Pennsylvania
- Housing
-
pay 20.9% more in Pennsylvania
- Childcare
-
pay 34.5% more in Pennsylvania
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 0.7% less in Pennsylvania
- Clothing
-
pay 1.2% less in Pennsylvania
The cost of childcare, transportation, groceries, housing, and restaurants in Pennsylvania are more expensive than in Iowa. Expenses including clothing and entertainment and sports are lower in Pennsylvania.
Pennsylvania vs. Iowa Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Pennsylvania instead of Iowa, you would:
pay 3.7% more for restaurants
|
Iowa
|
Pennsylvania
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$15.83
|
$18.35
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$10.57
|
$10.53
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.46
|
$2.39
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$1.82
|
$1.85
|
|
Iowa vs. Pennsylvania - Cost of restaurants
pay 24.1% more for groceries
|
Iowa
|
Pennsylvania
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$2.77
|
$3.50
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$5.89
|
$7.29
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$3.33
|
$4.21
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$3.30
|
$4.15
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$4.57
|
$5.39
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.96
|
$2.62
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.65
|
$0.73
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.93
|
$2.11
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$1.93
|
$2.50
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.99
|
$1.36
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.30
|
$1.59
|
|
Iowa vs. Pennsylvania - Cost of groceries
pay 27.8% more for transportation
|
Iowa
|
Pennsylvania
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$3.02
|
$3.27
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$38.07
|
$65.77
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$28,093.10
|
$32,293.42
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$15.46
|
$17.76
|
|
Iowa vs. Pennsylvania - Cost of transportation
pay 20.9% more for housing
|
Iowa
|
Pennsylvania
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$65.62
|
$66.32
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,069.66
|
$1,401.89
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$852.78
|
$1,229.68
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$133.13
|
$142.67
|
|
Iowa vs. Pennsylvania - Cost of housing
pay 34.5% more for childcare
|
Iowa
|
Pennsylvania
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$1,152.45
|
$1,240.98
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$18,898.50
|
$30,464.89
|
|
Iowa vs. Pennsylvania - Cost of childcare
pay 0.7% less for entertainment and sports
|
Iowa
|
Pennsylvania
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$4.44
|
$5.29
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$5.43
|
$5.04
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$8.55
|
$10.28
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$63.76
|
$38.69
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$13.58
|
$14.09
|
|
Iowa vs. Pennsylvania - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 1.2% less for clothing
|
Iowa
|
Pennsylvania
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$55.34
|
$50.59
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$41.65
|
$43.05
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$81.56
|
$83.26
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$106.86
|
$104.87
|
|
Iowa vs. Pennsylvania - 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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