Cost of living comparison
compared to
United States vs. Palau Cost of Living Summary
United States is 2.5 times more expensive than Palau overall.
- Restaurants
-
pay 62.1% more in United States
- Groceries
-
pay 20.4% less in United States
- Transportation
-
pay 17.7% more in United States
- Housing
-
pay 77.6% more in United States
- Childcare
-
pay 9.5 times more in United States
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 74.2% more in United States
- Clothing
-
pay 30.4% less in United States
The cost of childcare, housing, entertainment and sports, restaurants, and transportation in United States are more expensive than in Palau. Expenses including clothing and groceries are lower in United States. Notably, childcare and housing are significantly more expensive in United States.
United States vs. Palau Cost Breakdown
If you lived in United States instead of Palau, you would:
pay 62.1% more for restaurants
|
Palau
|
United States
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$12.00
|
$19.45
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$10.00
|
$11.12
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$1.37
|
$2.56
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$1.07
|
$2.00
|
|
Palau vs. United States - Cost of restaurants
pay 20.4% less for groceries
|
Palau
|
United States
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$3.44
|
$3.56
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$5.00
|
$6.50
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$9.97
|
$3.97
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$5.97
|
$4.27
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$6.30
|
$5.41
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$2.40
|
$2.37
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$1.00
|
$0.78
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$2.50
|
$2.04
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$7.50
|
$2.21
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$2.09
|
$1.34
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.50
|
$1.38
|
|
Palau vs. United States - Cost of groceries
pay 17.7% more for transportation
|
Palau
|
United States
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$6.75
|
$3.41
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass | ?? |
$65.85
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$17,500.00
|
$32,336.38
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) | ?? |
$17.61
|
|
Palau vs. United States - Cost of transportation
pay 77.6% more for housing
|
Palau
|
United States
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$129.50
|
$68.97
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$750.00
|
$1,664.59
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$550.00
|
$1,416.15
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
?? |
$150.19
|
|
Palau vs. United States - Cost of housing
pay 9.5 times more for childcare
|
Palau
|
United States
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$200.00
|
$1,387.27
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$1,920.00
|
$23,196.46
|
|
Palau vs. United States - Cost of childcare
pay 74.2% more for entertainment and sports
|
Palau
|
United States
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$1.50
|
$5.84
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$4.08
|
$5.15
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$11.25
|
$9.90
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$55.00
|
$51.45
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema | ?? |
$13.64
|
|
Palau vs. United States - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 30.4% less for clothing
|
Palau
|
United States
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$62.50
|
$51.08
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$52.50
|
$41.81
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$147.50
|
$87.56
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$195.00
|
$112.04
|
|
Palau vs. United States - 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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