Cost of living comparison
compared to
San Francisco vs. Paris Cost of Living Summary
San Francisco is 53.5% more expensive than Paris.
- Restaurants
-
pay 8.1% more in San Francisco
- Groceries
-
pay 41.9% more in San Francisco
- Transportation
-
pay 19.2% less in San Francisco
- Housing
-
pay 77.8% more in San Francisco
- Childcare
-
pay 3.5 times more in San Francisco
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 33.9% more in San Francisco
- Clothing
-
pay 17.3% less in San Francisco
The cost of childcare, housing, groceries, entertainment and sports, and restaurants in San Francisco are more expensive than in Paris. Expenses including transportation and clothing are lower in San Francisco. Notably, childcare and housing are significantly more expensive in San Francisco.
San Francisco vs. Paris Cost Breakdown
If you lived in San Francisco instead of Paris, you would:
pay 8.1% more for restaurants
|
Paris
|
San Francisco
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$17.52
€15.05
|
$30.00
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$14.02
€12.04
|
$14.50
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$4.24
€3.65
|
$3.30
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$3.24
€2.79
|
$2.59
|
|
Paris vs. San Francisco - Cost of restaurants
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pay 41.9% more for groceries
|
Paris
|
San Francisco
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$2.10
€1.80
|
$5.06
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$12.76
€10.96
|
$11.69
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$5.95
€5.11
|
$5.85
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$5.22
€4.49
|
$6.26
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$6.68
€5.74
|
$6.63
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.64
€1.41
|
$3.22
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$1.15
€0.99
|
$1.31
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.47
€1.26
|
$2.37
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$1.81
€1.56
|
$3.23
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.21
€1.04
|
$1.67
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.47
€1.26
|
$1.81
|
|
Paris vs. San Francisco - Cost of groceries
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pay 19.2% less for transportation
|
Paris
|
San Francisco
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$8.06
€6.92
|
$4.89
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$103.72
€89.07
|
$90.00
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$35,904.00
€30,834.75
|
$36,753.89
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$27.70
€23.79
|
$20.31
|
|
Paris vs. San Francisco - Cost of transportation
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pay 77.8% more for housing
|
Paris
|
San Francisco
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$37.58
€32.28
|
$68.78
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,637.45
€1,406.26
|
$3,446.66
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,198.19
€1,029.02
|
$2,736.00
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$200.70
€172.36
|
$179.63
|
|
Paris vs. San Francisco - Cost of housing
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pay 3.5 times more for childcare
|
Paris
|
San Francisco
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$798.13
€685.44
|
$3,236.11
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$14,327.34
€12,304.48
|
$42,000.00
|
|
Paris vs. San Francisco - Cost of childcare
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pay 33.9% more for entertainment and sports
|
Paris
|
San Francisco
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$8.18
€7.02
|
$8.00
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$4.93
€4.23
|
$5.98
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$15.18
€13.04
|
$14.00
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$43.12
€37.03
|
$109.64
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$16.35
€14.04
|
$17.00
|
|
Paris vs. San Francisco - Cost of entertainment and sports
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pay 17.3% less for clothing
|
Paris
|
San Francisco
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$118.15
€101.47
|
$70.00
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$48.25
€41.44
|
$48.82
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$123.09
€105.71
|
$102.00
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$152.69
€131.13
|
$133.67
|
|
Paris vs. San Francisco - 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: December 2025
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