Cost of living comparison
compared to
San Diego vs. New Orleans Cost of Living Summary
San Diego is 34.4% more expensive than New Orleans.
- Restaurants
-
pay 6.8% more in San Diego
- Groceries
-
pay 2.0% less in San Diego
- Transportation
-
pay 33.1% more in San Diego
- Housing
-
pay 54.1% more in San Diego
- Childcare
-
pay 96.5% more in San Diego
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 25.7% more in San Diego
- Clothing
-
pay 26.8% more in San Diego
The cost of childcare, housing, transportation, clothing, entertainment and sports, and restaurants in San Diego are more expensive than in New Orleans. Notably, childcare is significantly more expensive in San Diego.
San Diego vs. New Orleans Cost Breakdown
If you lived in San Diego instead of New Orleans, you would:
pay 6.8% more for restaurants
|
New Orleans
|
San Diego
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$26.00
|
$21.00
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$12.00
|
$15.00
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.96
|
$3.03
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.10
|
$2.50
|
|
New Orleans vs. San Diego - Cost of restaurants
pay 2.0% less for groceries
|
New Orleans
|
San Diego
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$4.10
|
$4.57
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$7.67
|
$7.36
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$5.27
|
$4.78
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$4.54
|
$5.84
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$4.97
|
$6.07
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$2.31
|
$2.22
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.78
|
$0.78
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$2.30
|
$1.91
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$2.46
|
$2.26
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.91
|
$1.42
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.33
|
$1.12
|
|
New Orleans vs. San Diego - Cost of groceries
pay 33.1% more for transportation
|
New Orleans
|
San Diego
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$2.98
|
$4.76
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$45.00
|
$72.00
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$36,884.90
|
$31,965.00
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$15.43
|
$19.40
|
|
New Orleans vs. San Diego - Cost of transportation
pay 54.1% more for housing
|
New Orleans
|
San Diego
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$71.46
|
$82.19
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,825.00
|
$3,033.00
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,166.67
|
$2,538.64
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$174.91
|
$205.84
|
|
New Orleans vs. San Diego - Cost of housing
pay 96.5% more for childcare
|
New Orleans
|
San Diego
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$1,563.89
|
$1,750.00
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$10,230.00
|
$28,750.00
|
|
New Orleans vs. San Diego - Cost of childcare
pay 25.7% more for entertainment and sports
|
New Orleans
|
San Diego
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$6.00
|
$8.00
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$5.61
|
$5.90
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$8.75
|
$12.00
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$62.00
|
$73.21
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$13.00
|
$17.50
|
|
New Orleans vs. San Diego - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 26.8% more for clothing
|
New Orleans
|
San Diego
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$55.00
|
$60.72
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$43.00
|
$58.44
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$71.00
|
$105.68
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$112.50
|
$126.25
|
|
New Orleans vs. San Diego - 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 San Diego or New Orleans. It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.