Cost of living comparison
compared to
Washington vs. New Orleans Cost of Living Summary
Washington is 13.6% more expensive than New Orleans.
- Restaurants
-
pay 12.0% less in Washington
- Groceries
-
pay 6.8% less in Washington
- Transportation
-
pay 24.9% more in Washington
- Housing
-
pay 1.8% more in Washington
- Childcare
-
pay 78.7% more in Washington
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 6.4% more in Washington
- Clothing
-
pay 2.1% more in Washington
The cost of childcare, transportation, entertainment and sports, clothing, and housing in Washington are more expensive than in New Orleans. Expenses including restaurants and groceries are lower in Washington. Notably, childcare is significantly more expensive in Washington.
Washington vs. New Orleans Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Washington instead of New Orleans, you would:
pay 12.0% less for restaurants
|
New Orleans
|
Washington
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$26.00
|
$20.22
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$12.00
|
$12.00
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.96
|
$2.63
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.10
|
$2.05
|
|
New Orleans vs. Washington - Cost of restaurants
pay 6.8% less for groceries
|
New Orleans
|
Washington
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$4.10
|
$3.94
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$7.67
|
$7.07
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$5.27
|
$4.20
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$4.54
|
$4.68
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$4.97
|
$5.75
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$2.31
|
$2.30
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.78
|
$0.86
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$2.30
|
$2.02
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$2.46
|
$2.09
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.91
|
$1.20
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.33
|
$1.24
|
|
New Orleans vs. Washington - Cost of groceries
pay 24.9% more for transportation
|
New Orleans
|
Washington
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$2.98
|
$4.20
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$45.00
|
$67.70
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$36,884.90
|
$34,322.93
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$15.43
|
$17.81
|
|
New Orleans vs. Washington - Cost of transportation
pay 1.8% more for housing
|
New Orleans
|
Washington
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$71.46
|
$72.42
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,825.00
|
$1,724.04
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,166.67
|
$1,522.88
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$174.91
|
$141.51
|
|
New Orleans vs. Washington - Cost of housing
pay 78.7% more for childcare
|
New Orleans
|
Washington
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$1,563.89
|
$1,634.82
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$10,230.00
|
$25,866.06
|
|
New Orleans vs. Washington - Cost of childcare
pay 6.4% more for entertainment and sports
|
New Orleans
|
Washington
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$6.00
|
$6.54
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$5.61
|
$5.33
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$8.75
|
$11.03
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$62.00
|
$56.25
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$13.00
|
$14.46
|
|
New Orleans vs. Washington - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 2.1% more for clothing
|
New Orleans
|
Washington
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$55.00
|
$49.71
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$43.00
|
$41.67
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$71.00
|
$88.77
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$112.50
|
$108.22
|
|
New Orleans vs. Washington - 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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