Cost of living comparison
compared to
California vs. North Carolina Cost of Living Summary
California is 20.4% more expensive than North Carolina.
- Restaurants
-
pay 21.8% more in California
- Groceries
-
pay 5.2% more in California
- Transportation
-
pay 15.1% more in California
- Housing
-
pay 36.4% more in California
- Childcare
-
pay 26.3% more in California
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 31.0% more in California
- Clothing
-
pay 7.2% more in California
The cost of housing, entertainment and sports, childcare, restaurants, transportation, and clothing in California are more expensive than in North Carolina.
California vs. North Carolina Cost Breakdown
If you lived in California instead of North Carolina, you would:
pay 21.8% more for restaurants
|
North Carolina
|
California
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$17.06
|
$21.84
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$10.47
|
$12.33
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.28
|
$2.79
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$1.82
|
$2.17
|
|
North Carolina vs. California - Cost of restaurants
pay 5.2% more for groceries
|
North Carolina
|
California
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$3.79
|
$4.20
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$6.80
|
$6.77
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$3.73
|
$4.73
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$3.98
|
$5.14
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$5.20
|
$6.05
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$2.47
|
$2.30
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.71
|
$0.92
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$2.20
|
$1.91
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$2.38
|
$2.38
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.74
|
$1.50
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.80
|
$1.41
|
|
North Carolina vs. California - Cost of groceries
pay 15.1% more for transportation
|
North Carolina
|
California
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$2.98
|
$4.72
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$60.67
|
$63.04
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$33,588.64
|
$30,529.84
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$19.99
|
$21.43
|
|
North Carolina vs. California - Cost of transportation
pay 36.4% more for housing
|
North Carolina
|
California
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$72.77
|
$67.96
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,488.15
|
$2,385.40
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,261.77
|
$2,043.56
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$132.31
|
$171.94
|
|
North Carolina vs. California - Cost of housing
pay 26.3% more for childcare
|
North Carolina
|
California
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$1,261.89
|
$1,633.13
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$24,633.15
|
$30,339.97
|
|
North Carolina vs. California - Cost of childcare
pay 31.0% more for entertainment and sports
|
North Carolina
|
California
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$5.12
|
$7.31
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$4.82
|
$5.58
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$7.77
|
$10.92
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$48.40
|
$68.02
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$12.98
|
$14.99
|
|
North Carolina vs. California - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 7.2% more for clothing
|
North Carolina
|
California
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$49.30
|
$56.47
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$37.76
|
$40.47
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$88.37
|
$87.50
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$111.01
|
$119.94
|
|
North Carolina vs. California - 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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