Cost of living comparison
compared to
California vs. Maine Cost of Living Summary
California is 13.1% more expensive than Maine.
- Restaurants
-
pay 2.1% more in California
- Groceries
-
pay 12.1% more in California
- Transportation
-
pay 27.4% more in California
- Housing
-
pay 32.8% more in California
- Childcare
-
pay 2.9% less in California
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 20.9% more in California
- Clothing
-
pay 0.9% less in California
The cost of housing, transportation, entertainment and sports, groceries, and restaurants in California are more expensive than in Maine. Expenses including childcare and clothing are lower in California.
California vs. Maine Cost Breakdown
If you lived in California instead of Maine, you would:
pay 2.1% more for restaurants
|
Maine
|
California
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$20.90
|
$21.84
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$12.05
|
$12.33
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.72
|
$2.79
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.19
|
$2.17
|
|
Maine vs. California - Cost of restaurants
pay 12.1% more for groceries
|
Maine
|
California
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$3.74
|
$4.20
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$7.41
|
$6.77
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$4.04
|
$4.73
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$3.75
|
$5.14
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$4.72
|
$6.05
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$2.15
|
$2.30
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.64
|
$0.92
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$2.10
|
$1.91
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$2.59
|
$2.38
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.26
|
$1.50
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.50
|
$1.41
|
|
Maine vs. California - Cost of groceries
pay 27.4% more for transportation
|
Maine
|
California
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$3.17
|
$4.72
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$60.00
|
$63.04
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$32,629.96
|
$30,529.84
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$13.21
|
$21.43
|
|
Maine vs. California - Cost of transportation
pay 32.8% more for housing
|
Maine
|
California
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$72.24
|
$67.96
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,512.90
|
$2,385.40
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,218.33
|
$2,043.56
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$154.18
|
$171.94
|
|
Maine vs. California - Cost of housing
pay 2.9% less for childcare
|
Maine
|
California
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$2,079.07
|
$1,633.13
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$26,277.78
|
$30,339.97
|
|
Maine vs. California - Cost of childcare
pay 20.9% more for entertainment and sports
|
Maine
|
California
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$6.15
|
$7.31
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$5.62
|
$5.58
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$10.10
|
$10.92
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$41.67
|
$68.02
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$13.05
|
$14.99
|
|
Maine vs. California - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 0.9% less for clothing
|
Maine
|
California
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$44.36
|
$56.47
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$52.15
|
$40.47
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$95.12
|
$87.50
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$120.60
|
$119.94
|
|
Maine vs. California - 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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