Cost of living comparison
compared to
Waterloo vs. Madrid Cost of Living Summary
Waterloo is 5.3% cheaper than Madrid.
- Restaurants
-
pay 28.7% less in Waterloo
- Groceries
-
pay 12.6% more in Waterloo
- Transportation
-
pay 6.7% less in Waterloo
- Housing
-
pay 6.5% more in Waterloo
- Childcare
-
pay 6.2% more in Waterloo
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 13.0% more in Waterloo
- Clothing
-
pay 40.3% less in Waterloo
The cost of entertainment and sports, groceries, housing, and childcare in Waterloo are more expensive than in Madrid. Expenses including clothing, restaurants, and transportation are lower in Waterloo.
Waterloo vs. Madrid Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Waterloo instead of Madrid, you would:
pay 28.7% less for restaurants
|
Madrid
|
Waterloo
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$18.10
€15.42
|
$14.35
CA$19.78
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$11.68
€9.95
|
$9.33
CA$12.85
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$3.13
€2.67
|
$1.55
CA$2.14
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.19
€1.87
|
$1.67
CA$2.31
|
|
Madrid vs. Waterloo - Cost of restaurants
pay 12.6% more for groceries
|
Madrid
|
Waterloo
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$1.71
€1.46
|
$2.13
CA$2.93
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$7.25
€6.17
|
$4.63
CA$6.38
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$4.61
€3.93
|
$7.83
CA$10.79
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$3.36
€2.86
|
$2.83
CA$3.90
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$4.05
€3.45
|
$6.59
CA$9.08
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.18
€1.00
|
$1.48
CA$2.04
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$1.02
€0.87
|
$0.58
CA$0.81
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.19
€1.02
|
$1.45
CA$2.00
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$1.26
€1.07
|
$1.62
CA$2.24
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.94
€0.80
|
$0.91
CA$1.25
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.01
€0.86
|
$1.04
CA$1.44
|
|
Madrid vs. Waterloo - Cost of groceries
pay 6.7% less for transportation
|
Madrid
|
Waterloo
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$7.08
€6.03
|
$4.06
CA$5.59
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$45.84
€39.06
|
$67.09
CA$92.45
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$38,541.72
€32,837.78
|
$24,382.26
CA$33,597.54
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$16.23
€13.83
|
$17.22
CA$23.73
|
|
Madrid vs. Waterloo - Cost of transportation
pay 6.5% more for housing
|
Madrid
|
Waterloo
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$34.54
€29.43
|
$50.59
CA$69.71
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,540.98
€1,312.93
|
$1,408.01
CA$1,940.17
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,118.82
€953.24
|
$1,172.06
CA$1,615.04
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$153.78
€131.02
|
$127.82
CA$176.12
|
|
Madrid vs. Waterloo - Cost of housing
pay 6.2% more for childcare
|
Madrid
|
Waterloo
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$673.20
€573.57
|
$545.73
CA$751.98
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$13,119.76
€11,178.11
|
$17,222.15
CA$23,731.27
|
|
Madrid vs. Waterloo - Cost of childcare
pay 13.0% more for entertainment and sports
|
Madrid
|
Waterloo
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$4.50
€3.83
|
$5.20
CA$7.17
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$3.20
€2.73
|
$2.85
CA$3.93
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$7.01
€5.97
|
$13.63
CA$18.79
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$51.05
€43.50
|
$35.28
CA$48.62
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$11.68
€9.95
|
$11.30
CA$15.57
|
|
Madrid vs. Waterloo - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 40.3% less for clothing
|
Madrid
|
Waterloo
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$98.88
€84.25
|
$43.77
CA$60.32
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$41.27
€35.16
|
$26.91
CA$37.08
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$107.49
€91.58
|
$65.30
CA$89.98
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$125.44
€106.87
|
$85.75
CA$118.16
|
|
Madrid vs. Waterloo - 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:
Compare countries by overall cost of living
See the
cost of living in Spain vs. Canada.
This provides a comparison of the average cost of living from cities within Spain and Canada.
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 Waterloo or Madrid. It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.