Cost of living comparison
compared to
Iowa vs. Ireland Cost of Living Summary
Iowa is 1.0% more expensive than Ireland overall.
- Restaurants
-
pay 7.0% less in Iowa
- Groceries
-
pay 12.6% more in Iowa
- Transportation
-
pay 48.0% less in Iowa
- Housing
-
pay 15.9% less in Iowa
- Childcare
-
pay 87.7% more in Iowa
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 12.1% less in Iowa
- Clothing
-
pay 10.3% less in Iowa
The cost of childcare and groceries in Iowa are more expensive than in Ireland. Expenses including transportation, housing, entertainment and sports, clothing, and restaurants are lower in Iowa. Notably, childcare is significantly more expensive in Iowa.
Iowa vs. Ireland Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Iowa instead of Ireland, you would:
pay 7.0% less for restaurants
|
Ireland
|
Iowa
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$19.70
€16.99
|
$15.83
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$11.31
€9.76
|
$10.57
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.39
€2.06
|
$2.46
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$1.91
€1.64
|
$1.82
|
|
Ireland vs. Iowa - Cost of restaurants
pay 12.6% more for groceries
|
Ireland
|
Iowa
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$2.04
€1.76
|
$2.77
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$5.16
€4.45
|
$5.89
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$5.89
€5.08
|
$3.33
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$4.07
€3.51
|
$3.30
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$5.10
€4.39
|
$4.57
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.37
€1.18
|
$1.96
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.97
€0.84
|
$0.65
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.39
€1.20
|
$1.93
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$1.79
€1.54
|
$1.93
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.86
€0.74
|
$0.99
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$0.68
€0.59
|
$1.30
|
|
Ireland vs. Iowa - Cost of groceries
pay 48.0% less for transportation
|
Ireland
|
Iowa
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$7.75
€6.68
|
$3.02
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$121.81
€105.04
|
$38.07
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$41,319.33
€35,630.77
|
$28,093.10
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$22.20
€19.14
|
$15.46
|
|
Ireland vs. Iowa - Cost of transportation
pay 15.9% less for housing
|
Ireland
|
Iowa
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$51.47
€44.39
|
$65.62
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,543.12
€1,330.68
|
$1,069.66
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,305.59
€1,125.85
|
$852.78
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$178.90
€154.27
|
$133.13
|
|
Ireland vs. Iowa - Cost of housing
pay 87.7% more for childcare
|
Ireland
|
Iowa
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$1,108.91
€956.25
|
$1,152.45
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$6,959.78
€6,001.60
|
$18,898.50
|
|
Ireland vs. Iowa - Cost of childcare
pay 12.1% less for entertainment and sports
|
Ireland
|
Iowa
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$6.63
€5.72
|
$4.44
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$4.32
€3.73
|
$5.43
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$19.16
€16.52
|
$8.55
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$63.57
€54.82
|
$63.76
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$13.32
€11.49
|
$13.58
|
|
Ireland vs. Iowa - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 10.3% less for clothing
|
Ireland
|
Iowa
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$89.93
€77.55
|
$55.34
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$41.06
€35.41
|
$41.65
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$96.01
€82.79
|
$81.56
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$96.40
€83.13
|
$106.86
|
|
Ireland vs. Iowa - 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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cost of living in Ireland vs. United States.
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