Cost of living comparison
compared to
Arkansas vs. New Jersey Cost of Living Summary
Arkansas is 23.7% cheaper than New Jersey.
- Restaurants
-
pay 8.1% less in Arkansas
- Groceries
-
pay 29.9% less in Arkansas
- Transportation
-
pay 31.0% less in Arkansas
- Housing
-
pay 16.0% less in Arkansas
- Childcare
-
pay 38.2% less in Arkansas
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 22.6% less in Arkansas
- Clothing
-
pay 19.8% less in Arkansas
Expenses including childcare, transportation, groceries, entertainment and sports, clothing, and housing are lower in Arkansas.
Arkansas vs. New Jersey Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Arkansas instead of New Jersey, you would:
pay 8.1% less for restaurants
|
New Jersey
|
Arkansas
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$19.95
|
$17.64
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$12.40
|
$10.93
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.60
|
$2.51
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.04
|
$1.93
|
|
New Jersey vs. Arkansas - Cost of restaurants
pay 29.9% less for groceries
|
New Jersey
|
Arkansas
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$4.17
|
$3.23
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$8.09
|
$5.50
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$4.78
|
$3.97
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$5.24
|
$3.55
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$5.96
|
$4.65
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$2.76
|
$2.02
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.98
|
$0.62
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$2.20
|
$1.36
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$2.62
|
$1.52
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.44
|
$1.07
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.60
|
$1.07
|
|
New Jersey vs. Arkansas - Cost of groceries
pay 31.0% less for transportation
|
New Jersey
|
Arkansas
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$3.24
|
$2.79
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$116.02
|
$35.67
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$32,841.50
|
$29,285.97
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$19.75
|
$13.84
|
|
New Jersey vs. Arkansas - Cost of transportation
pay 16.0% less for housing
|
New Jersey
|
Arkansas
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$62.68
|
$67.56
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$2,279.92
|
$1,168.77
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,885.98
|
$935.60
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$126.74
|
$161.48
|
|
New Jersey vs. Arkansas - Cost of housing
pay 38.2% less for childcare
|
New Jersey
|
Arkansas
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$2,023.96
|
$1,014.29
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$27,267.62
|
$20,052.00
|
|
New Jersey vs. Arkansas - Cost of childcare
pay 22.6% less for entertainment and sports
|
New Jersey
|
Arkansas
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$6.95
|
$5.21
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$5.20
|
$5.04
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$12.79
|
$8.05
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$52.90
|
$39.35
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$16.52
|
$12.86
|
|
New Jersey vs. Arkansas - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 19.8% less for clothing
|
New Jersey
|
Arkansas
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$57.64
|
$51.00
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$49.26
|
$39.19
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$99.28
|
$84.86
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$136.81
|
$92.24
|
|
New Jersey vs. Arkansas - 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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