Cost of living comparison
compared to
Los Angeles vs. New Jersey Cost of Living Summary
Los Angeles is 4.5% more expensive than New Jersey.
- Restaurants
-
pay 12.5% more in Los Angeles
- Groceries
-
pay 2.4% more in Los Angeles
- Transportation
-
pay 4.7% more in Los Angeles
- Housing
-
pay 14.3% more in Los Angeles
- Childcare
-
pay 7.0% less in Los Angeles
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 2.9% more in Los Angeles
- Clothing
-
pay 1.5% more in Los Angeles
The cost of housing, restaurants, transportation, entertainment and sports, groceries, and clothing in Los Angeles are more expensive than in New Jersey.
Los Angeles vs. New Jersey Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Los Angeles instead of New Jersey, you would:
pay 12.5% more for restaurants
|
New Jersey
|
Los Angeles
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$19.95
|
$25.00
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$12.40
|
$13.00
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.60
|
$2.83
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.04
|
$2.26
|
|
New Jersey vs. Los Angeles - Cost of restaurants
pay 2.4% more for groceries
|
New Jersey
|
Los Angeles
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$4.17
|
$4.52
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$8.09
|
$6.67
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$4.78
|
$4.71
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$5.24
|
$7.43
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$5.96
|
$7.55
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$2.76
|
$2.60
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.98
|
$1.27
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$2.20
|
$2.00
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$2.62
|
$2.17
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.44
|
$1.38
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.60
|
$1.22
|
|
New Jersey vs. Los Angeles - Cost of groceries
pay 4.7% more for transportation
|
New Jersey
|
Los Angeles
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$3.24
|
$4.78
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$116.02
|
$93.48
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$32,841.50
|
$32,727.50
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$19.75
|
$18.01
|
|
New Jersey vs. Los Angeles - Cost of transportation
pay 14.3% more for housing
|
New Jersey
|
Los Angeles
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$62.68
|
$74.01
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$2,279.92
|
$2,536.54
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,885.98
|
$1,984.71
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$126.74
|
$155.53
|
|
New Jersey vs. Los Angeles - Cost of housing
pay 7.0% less for childcare
|
New Jersey
|
Los Angeles
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$2,023.96
|
$1,762.50
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$27,267.62
|
$27,000.00
|
|
New Jersey vs. Los Angeles - Cost of childcare
pay 2.9% more for entertainment and sports
|
New Jersey
|
Los Angeles
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$6.95
|
$8.00
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$5.20
|
$5.76
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$12.79
|
$11.50
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$52.90
|
$47.45
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$16.52
|
$18.00
|
|
New Jersey vs. Los Angeles - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 1.5% more for clothing
|
New Jersey
|
Los Angeles
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$57.64
|
$61.25
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$49.26
|
$44.15
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$99.28
|
$100.09
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$136.81
|
$149.85
|
|
New Jersey vs. Los Angeles - 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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