Cost of living comparison
compared to
South Dakota vs. North Dakota Cost of Living Summary
South Dakota is 10.7% cheaper than North Dakota.
- Restaurants
-
pay 17.9% less in South Dakota
- Groceries
-
pay 2.1% less in South Dakota
- Transportation
-
pay 7.5% less in South Dakota
- Housing
-
pay 7.6% less in South Dakota
- Childcare
-
pay 30.4% less in South Dakota
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 14.4% less in South Dakota
- Clothing
-
pay 4.7% more in South Dakota
Expenses including childcare, restaurants, entertainment and sports, housing, transportation, and groceries are lower in South Dakota.
South Dakota vs. North Dakota Cost Breakdown
If you lived in South Dakota instead of North Dakota, you would:
pay 17.9% less for restaurants
|
North Dakota
|
South Dakota
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$23.75
|
$12.33
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$11.93
|
$10.19
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.61
|
$3.03
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.26
|
$1.69
|
|
North Dakota vs. South Dakota - Cost of restaurants
pay 2.1% less for groceries
|
North Dakota
|
South Dakota
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$3.20
|
$3.01
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$6.11
|
$5.97
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$4.19
|
$3.68
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$3.82
|
$4.88
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$6.68
|
$4.68
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$2.43
|
$2.07
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.91
|
$0.89
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$2.00
|
$1.78
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$1.90
|
$2.21
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.26
|
$1.41
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.47
|
$1.46
|
|
North Dakota vs. South Dakota - Cost of groceries
pay 7.5% less for transportation
|
North Dakota
|
South Dakota
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$3.04
|
$3.00
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$42.00
|
$30.00
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$33,161.99
|
$35,568.55
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) | ?? |
$15.14
|
|
North Dakota vs. South Dakota - Cost of transportation
pay 7.6% less for housing
|
North Dakota
|
South Dakota
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$73.48
|
$49.40
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,021.46
|
$1,053.00
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$800.42
|
$974.82
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$186.50
|
$144.28
|
|
North Dakota vs. South Dakota - Cost of housing
pay 30.4% less for childcare
|
North Dakota
|
South Dakota
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$1,026.67
|
$715.00
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters | ?? |
$7,800.00
|
|
North Dakota vs. South Dakota - Cost of childcare
pay 14.4% less for entertainment and sports
|
North Dakota
|
South Dakota
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$5.47
|
$4.42
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$6.04
|
$4.69
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$8.89
|
$9.38
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$58.33
|
$47.44
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$13.94
|
$11.56
|
|
North Dakota vs. South Dakota - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 4.7% more for clothing
|
North Dakota
|
South Dakota
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$50.27
|
$47.89
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$54.42
|
$42.78
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$85.10
|
$89.39
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$88.33
|
$123.62
|
|
North Dakota vs. South Dakota - 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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