Cost of living comparison
compared to
California vs. Nebraska Cost of Living Summary
California is 28.2% more expensive than Nebraska.
- Restaurants
-
pay 15.6% more in California
- Groceries
-
pay 21.1% more in California
- Transportation
-
pay 25.1% more in California
- Housing
-
pay 56.1% more in California
- Childcare
-
pay 52.8% more in California
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 21.1% more in California
- Clothing
-
pay 5.9% more in California
The cost of housing, childcare, transportation, groceries, entertainment and sports, and restaurants in California are more expensive than in Nebraska.
California vs. Nebraska Cost Breakdown
If you lived in California instead of Nebraska, you would:
pay 15.6% more for restaurants
|
Nebraska
|
California
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$17.75
|
$21.84
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$12.00
|
$12.33
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.59
|
$2.79
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$1.69
|
$2.17
|
|
Nebraska vs. California - Cost of restaurants
pay 21.1% more for groceries
|
Nebraska
|
California
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$2.98
|
$4.20
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$5.41
|
$6.77
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$3.34
|
$4.73
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$3.65
|
$5.14
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$4.18
|
$6.05
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$2.59
|
$2.30
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.92
|
$0.92
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$2.63
|
$1.91
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$1.99
|
$2.38
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.98
|
$1.50
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.34
|
$1.41
|
|
Nebraska vs. California - Cost of groceries
pay 25.1% more for transportation
|
Nebraska
|
California
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$2.99
|
$4.72
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$56.67
|
$63.04
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$33,074.87
|
$30,529.84
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$15.39
|
$21.43
|
|
Nebraska vs. California - Cost of transportation
pay 56.1% more for housing
|
Nebraska
|
California
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$64.67
|
$67.96
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,180.38
|
$2,385.40
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$947.12
|
$2,043.56
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$169.30
|
$171.94
|
|
Nebraska vs. California - Cost of housing
pay 52.8% more for childcare
|
Nebraska
|
California
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$894.38
|
$1,633.13
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$24,673.50
|
$30,339.97
|
|
Nebraska vs. California - Cost of childcare
pay 21.1% more for entertainment and sports
|
Nebraska
|
California
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$5.25
|
$7.31
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$5.41
|
$5.58
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$9.21
|
$10.92
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$48.75
|
$68.02
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$14.25
|
$14.99
|
|
Nebraska vs. California - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 5.9% more for clothing
|
Nebraska
|
California
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$48.33
|
$56.47
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$37.12
|
$40.47
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$90.70
|
$87.50
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$118.40
|
$119.94
|
|
Nebraska 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
Change currency:
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 California or Nebraska. It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.