Cost of living comparison

compared to

District of Columbia vs. North Dakota Cost of Living Summary

District of Columbia is 52.1% more expensive than North Dakota.

Restaurants: pay 13.0% more in District of Columbia
Groceries: pay 19.4% more in District of Columbia
Transportation: pay 36.1% more in District of Columbia
Housing: pay 71.4% more in District of Columbia
Childcare: pay 2.6 times more in District of Columbia
Entertainment and Sports: pay 38.2% more in District of Columbia
Clothing: pay 28.4% more in District of Columbia

The cost of childcare, housing, entertainment and sports, transportation, clothing, and groceries in District of Columbia are more expensive than in North Dakota. Notably, childcare is significantly more expensive in District of Columbia.

District of Columbia vs. North Dakota Cost Breakdown

If you lived in District of Columbia instead of North Dakota, you would:

Display currency: USD

pay 13.0% more for restaurants

	North Dakota	District of Columbia
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$23.75	$25.00	+5.3%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$11.93	$12.00	+0.6%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$2.61	$3.20	+22.6%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$2.26	$2.79	+23.5%
Average			+13.0%

North Dakota vs. District of Columbia - Cost of restaurants

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pay 19.4% more for groceries

	North Dakota	District of Columbia
Bread 1 loaf	$3.20	$4.43	+38.4%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$6.11	$8.04	+31.7%
Milk (1 gallon)	$4.19	$4.19	-0.1%
Eggs 1 dozen	$3.82	$4.55	+18.9%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$6.68	$7.74	+15.9%
Apples (1 lb)	$2.43	$2.95	+21.2%
Bananas (1 lb)	$0.91	$0.92	+1.7%
Oranges (1 lb)	$2.00	$2.20	+10.0%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$1.90	$3.00	+57.6%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$1.26	$1.35	+6.5%
Onions (1 lb)	$1.47	$1.64	+11.3%
Average			+19.4%

North Dakota vs. District of Columbia - Cost of groceries

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pay 36.1% more for transportation

	North Dakota	District of Columbia
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$3.04	$3.53	+16.1%
Monthly public transit pass	$42.00	$77.50	+84.5%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$33,161.99	$35,699.74	+7.7%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	??	$16.73
Average			+36.1%

North Dakota vs. District of Columbia - Cost of transportation

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pay 71.4% more for housing

	North Dakota	District of Columbia
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$73.48	$69.41	-5.5%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$1,021.46	$2,568.48	+151.5%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$800.42	$2,088.16	+160.9%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$186.50	$146.54	-21.4%
Average			+71.4%

North Dakota vs. District of Columbia - Cost of housing

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pay 2.6 times more for childcare

	North Dakota	District of Columbia
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$1,026.67	$2,650.00	+158.1%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	??	$40,166.67
Average			+158.1%

North Dakota vs. District of Columbia - Cost of childcare

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pay 38.2% more for entertainment and sports

	North Dakota	District of Columbia
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$5.47	$8.00	+46.2%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$6.04	$6.07	+0.5%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$8.89	$13.00	+46.3%
Monthly membership at local gym	$58.33	$103.76	+77.9%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$13.94	$16.75	+20.2%
Average			+38.2%

North Dakota vs. District of Columbia - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 28.4% more for clothing

	North Dakota	District of Columbia
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$50.27	$76.00	+51.2%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$54.42	$48.40	-11.1%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$85.10	$104.31	+22.6%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$88.33	$133.22	+50.8%
Average			+28.4%

North Dakota vs. District of Columbia - Cost of clothing

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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: March 2026

Compare further: North Dakota vs. District of Columbia

Quality of Life Comparison · 19 statistics

Make 2.6 times more money in District of Columbia

Size Comparison · See true size

North Dakota is about 1,009 times bigger than District of Columbia.

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