Cost of living comparison
compared to
India vs. North Carolina Cost of Living Summary
India is 71.9% cheaper than North Carolina.
- Restaurants
-
pay 81.2% less in India
- Groceries
-
pay 73.2% less in India
- Transportation
-
pay 45.7% less in India
- Housing
-
pay 88.4% less in India
- Childcare
-
pay 94.6% less in India
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 66.0% less in India
- Clothing
-
pay 54.4% less in India
Expenses including childcare, housing, restaurants, groceries, entertainment and sports, and clothing are lower in India.
India vs. North Carolina Cost Breakdown
If you lived in India instead of North Carolina, you would:
pay 81.2% less for restaurants
|
North Carolina
|
India
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$17.06
|
$2.31
₹206.21
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$10.47
|
$3.75
₹335.49
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.28
|
$0.39
₹35.17
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$1.82
|
$0.16
₹14.36
|
|
North Carolina vs. India - Cost of restaurants
pay 73.2% less for groceries
|
North Carolina
|
India
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$3.79
|
$0.46
₹40.99
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$6.80
|
$2.49
₹222.53
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$3.73
|
$2.50
₹223.40
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$3.98
|
$0.92
₹82.29
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$5.20
|
$1.32
₹117.54
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$2.47
|
$0.88
₹78.31
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.71
|
$0.32
₹28.22
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$2.20
|
$0.46
₹40.66
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$2.38
|
$0.22
₹19.70
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.74
|
$0.17
₹14.91
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.80
|
$0.19
₹17.39
|
|
North Carolina vs. India - Cost of groceries
pay 45.7% less for transportation
|
North Carolina
|
India
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$2.98
|
$4.38
₹391.36
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$60.67
|
$9.48
₹847.15
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$33,588.64
|
$13,332.05
₹1,191,189.91
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$19.99
|
$2.95
₹263.95
|
|
North Carolina vs. India - Cost of transportation
pay 88.4% less for housing
|
North Carolina
|
India
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$72.77
|
$7.18
₹641.55
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,488.15
|
$129.45
₹11,566.12
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,261.77
|
$85.74
₹7,660.63
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$132.31
|
$27.98
₹2,500.20
|
|
North Carolina vs. India - Cost of housing
pay 94.6% less for childcare
|
North Carolina
|
India
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$1,261.89
|
$54.51
₹4,870.23
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$24,633.15
|
$1,593.07
₹142,337.57
|
|
North Carolina vs. India - Cost of childcare
pay 66.0% less for entertainment and sports
|
North Carolina
|
India
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$5.12
|
$1.84
₹164.03
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$4.82
|
$1.58
₹141.02
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$7.77
|
$3.49
₹311.70
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$48.40
|
$15.59
₹1,392.59
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$12.98
|
$3.17
₹283.17
|
|
North Carolina vs. India - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 54.4% less for clothing
|
North Carolina
|
India
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$49.30
|
$22.98
₹2,053.12
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$37.76
|
$23.83
₹2,129.50
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$88.37
|
$40.59
₹3,626.97
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$111.01
|
$29.72
₹2,655.10
|
|
North Carolina vs. India - 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:
Compare countries by overall cost of living
See the
cost of living in United States vs. India.
This provides a comparison of the average cost of living from cities within United States and India.
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 India or North Carolina. It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.