Cost of living comparison
compared to
Idaho vs. Montana Cost of Living Summary
Idaho is 8.5% cheaper than Montana.
Idaho vs. Montana Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Idaho instead of Montana, you would:
pay 6.7% less for restaurants
|
Montana
|
Idaho
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$19.36
|
$18.17
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$13.71
|
$10.84
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.27
|
$2.34
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$1.97
|
$1.92
|
|
Montana vs. Idaho - Cost of restaurants
pay 9.3% less for groceries
|
Montana
|
Idaho
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$3.67
|
$3.16
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$7.92
|
$6.29
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$4.18
|
$3.49
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$4.60
|
$4.45
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$5.14
|
$5.53
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$2.52
|
$2.11
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.79
|
$0.71
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$2.00
|
$1.67
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$2.26
|
$1.99
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.93
|
$0.96
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.01
|
$0.96
|
|
Montana vs. Idaho - Cost of groceries
pay 5.6% more for transportation
|
Montana
|
Idaho
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$3.31
|
$3.37
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$39.33
|
$42.00
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$29,225.00
|
$31,942.61
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$17.76
|
$18.58
|
|
Montana vs. Idaho - Cost of transportation
pay 14.3% less for housing
|
Montana
|
Idaho
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$81.66
|
$70.21
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,523.61
|
$1,332.81
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,255.90
|
$1,136.20
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$145.23
|
$114.28
|
|
Montana vs. Idaho - Cost of housing
pay 18.1% less for childcare
|
Montana
|
Idaho
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$1,227.22
|
$1,051.96
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$26,566.67
|
$20,763.73
|
|
Montana vs. Idaho - Cost of childcare
pay 1.6% more for entertainment and sports
|
Montana
|
Idaho
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$5.09
|
$5.42
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$5.06
|
$5.10
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$9.36
|
$8.58
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$58.29
|
$58.69
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$12.71
|
$13.79
|
|
Montana vs. Idaho - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 18.4% less for clothing
|
Montana
|
Idaho
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$61.43
|
$48.49
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$59.58
|
$41.89
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$91.28
|
$83.43
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$108.50
|
$92.97
|
|
Montana vs. Idaho - 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: March 2026
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