Cost of living comparison
compared to
San Francisco vs. Raleigh Cost of Living Summary
San Francisco is 48.8% more expensive than Raleigh.
- Restaurants
-
pay 39.8% more in San Francisco
- Groceries
-
pay 31.3% more in San Francisco
- Transportation
-
pay 49.8% more in San Francisco
- Housing
-
pay 51.9% more in San Francisco
- Childcare
-
pay 95.8% more in San Francisco
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 64.5% more in San Francisco
- Clothing
-
pay 8.2% more in San Francisco
San Francisco vs. Raleigh Cost Breakdown
If you lived in San Francisco instead of Raleigh, you would:
pay 39.8% more for restaurants
|
Raleigh
|
San Francisco
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$20.00
|
$30.00
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$10.00
|
$14.50
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.37
|
$3.30
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.07
|
$2.59
|
|
Raleigh vs. San Francisco - Cost of restaurants
pay 31.3% more for groceries
|
Raleigh
|
San Francisco
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$4.07
|
$5.06
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$6.87
|
$11.69
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$3.35
|
$5.85
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$4.68
|
$6.26
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$5.21
|
$6.63
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$2.89
|
$3.22
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.63
|
$1.31
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$2.57
|
$2.37
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$2.94
|
$3.23
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.68
|
$1.67
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.93
|
$1.81
|
|
Raleigh vs. San Francisco - Cost of groceries
pay 49.8% more for transportation
|
Raleigh
|
San Francisco
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$3.12
|
$4.89
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$45.00
|
$90.00
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$34,689.37
|
$36,753.89
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$14.90
|
$20.31
|
|
Raleigh vs. San Francisco - Cost of transportation
pay 51.9% more for housing
|
Raleigh
|
San Francisco
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$67.64
|
$68.78
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,775.64
|
$3,446.66
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,470.00
|
$2,736.00
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$142.76
|
$179.63
|
|
Raleigh vs. San Francisco - Cost of housing
pay 95.8% more for childcare
|
Raleigh
|
San Francisco
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$1,490.00
|
$3,236.11
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$24,083.25
|
$42,000.00
|
|
Raleigh vs. San Francisco - Cost of childcare
pay 64.5% more for entertainment and sports
|
Raleigh
|
San Francisco
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$5.88
|
$8.00
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$5.27
|
$5.98
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$7.50
|
$14.00
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$40.18
|
$109.64
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$15.00
|
$17.00
|
|
Raleigh vs. San Francisco - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 8.2% more for clothing
|
Raleigh
|
San Francisco
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$51.78
|
$70.00
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$48.25
|
$48.82
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$103.08
|
$102.00
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$137.22
|
$133.67
|
|
Raleigh vs. San Francisco - 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: October 2026
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