Cost of living comparison
compared to
California vs. Missouri Cost of Living Summary
California is 34.4% more expensive than Missouri.
- Restaurants
-
pay 23.2% more in California
- Groceries
-
pay 20.6% more in California
- Transportation
-
pay 17.7% more in California
- Housing
-
pay 64.6% more in California
- Childcare
-
pay 59.8% more in California
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 45.8% more in California
- Clothing
-
pay 9.3% more in California
The cost of housing, childcare, entertainment and sports, restaurants, groceries, and transportation in California are more expensive than in Missouri.
California vs. Missouri Cost Breakdown
If you lived in California instead of Missouri, you would:
pay 23.2% more for restaurants
|
Missouri
|
California
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$17.31
|
$21.84
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$10.06
|
$12.33
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.27
|
$2.79
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$1.79
|
$2.17
|
|
Missouri vs. California - Cost of restaurants
pay 20.6% more for groceries
|
Missouri
|
California
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$3.05
|
$4.20
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$5.44
|
$6.77
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$3.83
|
$4.73
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$3.59
|
$5.14
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$3.92
|
$6.05
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$2.43
|
$2.30
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.73
|
$0.92
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$2.07
|
$1.91
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$2.35
|
$2.38
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.06
|
$1.50
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.60
|
$1.41
|
|
Missouri vs. California - Cost of groceries
pay 17.7% more for transportation
|
Missouri
|
California
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$2.92
|
$4.72
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$113.46
|
$63.04
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$31,610.55
|
$30,529.84
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$13.63
|
$21.43
|
|
Missouri vs. California - Cost of transportation
pay 64.6% more for housing
|
Missouri
|
California
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$66.56
|
$67.96
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,120.17
|
$2,385.40
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$898.77
|
$2,043.56
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$148.28
|
$171.94
|
|
Missouri vs. California - Cost of housing
pay 59.8% more for childcare
|
Missouri
|
California
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$1,025.78
|
$1,633.13
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$18,925.33
|
$30,339.97
|
|
Missouri vs. California - Cost of childcare
pay 45.8% more for entertainment and sports
|
Missouri
|
California
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$4.77
|
$7.31
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$4.84
|
$5.58
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$7.45
|
$10.92
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$33.84
|
$68.02
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$13.25
|
$14.99
|
|
Missouri vs. California - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 9.3% more for clothing
|
Missouri
|
California
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$49.41
|
$56.47
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$39.99
|
$40.47
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$83.53
|
$87.50
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$102.44
|
$119.94
|
|
Missouri 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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