Rochester vs. Minnesota Cost of Living Summary

Rochester is 1.2% more expensive than Minnesota.

Restaurants
pay 13.0% more in Rochester
Groceries
pay 5.6% less in Rochester
Transportation
pay 2.6% less in Rochester
Housing
pay 1.8% less in Rochester
Childcare
pay 18.4% more in Rochester
Entertainment and Sports
pay 0.8% less in Rochester
Clothing
pay 12.2% less in Rochester

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

Rochester vs. Minnesota Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Rochester instead of Minnesota, you would:

pay 13.0% more for restaurants

 
Minnesota
Rochester
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant $18.17
 
$25.00
 
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
$11.25
 
$10.00
 
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) $2.48
 
$3.29
 

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pay 5.6% less for groceries

 
Minnesota
Rochester
Bread
1 loaf
$3.28
 
$3.01
 
Local cheese (8 oz) $5.34
 
$5.49
 
Milk (1 gallon) $3.66
 
$3.61
 

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pay 2.6% less for transportation

 
Minnesota
Rochester
Gasoline (1 gallon) $3.15
 
$3.35
 
Monthly public transit pass $72.00
 
$42.00
 
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) $32,149.01
 
$36,344.69
 

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pay 1.8% less for housing

 
Minnesota
Rochester
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
$67.48
 
$58.66
 
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area $1,182.19
 
$1,462.00
 
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center $1,123.71
 
$1,132.00
 

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pay 18.4% more for childcare

 
Minnesota
Rochester
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly $1,260.39
 
$1,356.50
 
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters $22,591.00
 
$29,200.00
 

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pay 0.8% less for entertainment and sports

 
Minnesota
Rochester
Domestic/local beer (1 pint) $5.52
 
$4.25
 
Cappuccino in mid-range area $5.01
 
$5.00
 
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
$10.69
 
$15.00
 

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pay 12.2% less for clothing

 
Minnesota
Rochester
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
$53.07
 
$40.71
 
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
$45.44
 
$33.30
 
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
$77.05
 
$84.47
 

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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: April 2026
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