Cost of living comparison
compared to
Washington vs. Normal Cost of Living Summary
Washington is 83.5% more expensive than Normal.
- Restaurants
-
pay 68.0% more in Washington
- Groceries
-
pay 35.9% more in Washington
- Transportation
-
pay 4.6% more in Washington
- Housing
-
pay 97.3% more in Washington
- Childcare
-
pay 3.8 times more in Washington
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 66.8% more in Washington
- Clothing
-
pay 33.2% more in Washington
The cost of childcare, housing, restaurants, entertainment and sports, groceries, and clothing in Washington are more expensive than in Normal. Notably, childcare and housing are significantly more expensive in Washington.
Washington vs. Normal Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Washington instead of Normal, you would:
pay 68.0% more for restaurants
|
Normal
|
Washington
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$10.00
|
$25.00
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$10.50
|
$12.00
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$3.08
|
$3.20
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$1.37
|
$2.79
|
|
Normal vs. Washington - Cost of restaurants
pay 35.9% more for groceries
|
Normal
|
Washington
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$2.31
|
$4.43
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$4.41
|
$8.04
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$2.95
|
$4.19
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$4.00
|
$4.55
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$5.77
|
$7.74
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$3.00
|
$2.95
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.58
|
$0.92
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$3.00
|
$2.20
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$1.82
|
$3.00
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.15
|
$1.35
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.37
|
$1.64
|
|
Normal vs. Washington - Cost of groceries
pay 4.6% more for transportation
|
Normal
|
Washington
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$3.01
|
$3.53
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$92.50
|
$77.50
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$36,036.53
|
$35,699.74
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$14.15
|
$16.73
|
|
Normal vs. Washington - Cost of transportation
pay 97.3% more for housing
|
Normal
|
Washington
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$65.00
|
$69.41
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$850.00
|
$2,568.48
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$700.00
|
$2,088.16
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$178.78
|
$146.54
|
|
Normal vs. Washington - Cost of housing
pay 3.8 times more for childcare
|
Normal
|
Washington
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$700.00
|
$2,650.00
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters | ?? |
$40,166.67
|
|
Normal vs. Washington - Cost of childcare
pay 66.8% more for entertainment and sports
|
Normal
|
Washington
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$5.17
|
$8.00
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$5.00
|
$6.07
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$8.18
|
$13.00
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$40.00
|
$103.76
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$12.00
|
$16.75
|
|
Normal vs. Washington - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 33.2% more for clothing
|
Normal
|
Washington
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$30.00
|
$76.00
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$40.00
|
$48.40
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$150.00
|
$104.31
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$150.00
|
$133.22
|
|
Normal 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
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 Washington or Normal. It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.