Cost of living comparison
compared to
North Carolina vs. Palau Cost of Living Summary
North Carolina is 2.4 times more expensive than Palau overall.
- Restaurants
-
pay 46.2% more in North Carolina
- Groceries
-
pay 15.5% less in North Carolina
- Transportation
-
pay 18.0% more in North Carolina
- Housing
-
pay 61.3% more in North Carolina
- Childcare
-
pay 9.6 times more in North Carolina
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 54.2% more in North Carolina
- Clothing
-
pay 33.1% less in North Carolina
The cost of childcare, housing, entertainment and sports, restaurants, and transportation in North Carolina are more expensive than in Palau. Expenses including clothing and groceries are lower in North Carolina. Notably, childcare is significantly more expensive in North Carolina.
North Carolina vs. Palau Cost Breakdown
If you lived in North Carolina instead of Palau, you would:
pay 46.2% more for restaurants
|
Palau
|
North Carolina
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$12.00
|
$17.06
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$10.00
|
$10.47
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$1.37
|
$2.28
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$1.07
|
$1.82
|
|
Palau vs. North Carolina - Cost of restaurants
pay 15.5% less for groceries
|
Palau
|
North Carolina
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$3.44
|
$3.79
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$5.00
|
$6.80
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$9.97
|
$3.73
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$5.97
|
$3.98
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$6.30
|
$5.20
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$2.40
|
$2.47
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$1.00
|
$0.71
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$2.50
|
$2.20
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$7.50
|
$2.38
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$2.09
|
$1.74
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.50
|
$1.80
|
|
Palau vs. North Carolina - Cost of groceries
pay 18.0% more for transportation
|
Palau
|
North Carolina
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$6.75
|
$2.98
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass | ?? |
$60.67
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$17,500.00
|
$33,588.64
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) | ?? |
$19.99
|
|
Palau vs. North Carolina - Cost of transportation
pay 61.3% more for housing
|
Palau
|
North Carolina
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$129.50
|
$72.77
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$750.00
|
$1,488.15
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$550.00
|
$1,261.77
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
?? |
$132.31
|
|
Palau vs. North Carolina - Cost of housing
pay 9.6 times more for childcare
|
Palau
|
North Carolina
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$200.00
|
$1,261.89
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$1,920.00
|
$24,633.15
|
|
Palau vs. North Carolina - Cost of childcare
pay 54.2% more for entertainment and sports
|
Palau
|
North Carolina
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$1.50
|
$5.12
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$4.08
|
$4.82
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$11.25
|
$7.77
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$55.00
|
$48.40
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema | ?? |
$12.98
|
|
Palau vs. North Carolina - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 33.1% less for clothing
|
Palau
|
North Carolina
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$62.50
|
$49.30
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$52.50
|
$37.76
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$147.50
|
$88.37
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$195.00
|
$111.01
|
|
Palau vs. North Carolina - 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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