Cost of living comparison
compared to
Washington vs. Reston Cost of Living Summary
Washington is 10.8% more expensive than Reston.
- Restaurants
-
pay 10.8% more in Washington
- Groceries
-
pay 3.6% less in Washington
- Transportation
-
pay 1.2% less in Washington
- Housing
-
pay 13.3% more in Washington
- Childcare
-
pay 24.6% more in Washington
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 20.5% more in Washington
- Clothing
-
pay 11.3% more in Washington
The cost of childcare, entertainment and sports, housing, clothing, and restaurants in Washington are more expensive than in Reston. Expenses including groceries and transportation are lower in Washington.
Washington vs. Reston Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Washington instead of Reston, you would:
pay 10.8% more for restaurants
|
Reston
|
Washington
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$22.00
|
$25.00
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$11.00
|
$12.00
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.88
|
$3.20
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.55
|
$2.79
|
|
Reston vs. Washington - Cost of restaurants
pay 3.6% less for groceries
|
Reston
|
Washington
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$4.23
|
$4.43
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$9.55
|
$8.04
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$4.39
|
$4.19
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$5.33
|
$4.55
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$9.17
|
$7.74
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$3.41
|
$2.95
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.87
|
$0.92
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$2.11
|
$2.20
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$2.62
|
$3.00
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.58
|
$1.35
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.48
|
$1.64
|
|
Reston vs. Washington - Cost of groceries
pay 1.2% less for transportation
|
Reston
|
Washington
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$3.17
|
$3.53
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$130.00
|
$77.50
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$34,231.99
|
$35,699.74
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$13.94
|
$16.73
|
|
Reston vs. Washington - Cost of transportation
pay 13.3% more for housing
|
Reston
|
Washington
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$67.00
|
$69.41
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$2,000.00
|
$2,568.48
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,566.67
|
$2,088.16
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$166.32
|
$146.54
|
|
Reston vs. Washington - Cost of housing
pay 24.6% more for childcare
|
Reston
|
Washington
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$1,923.33
|
$2,650.00
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$36,066.67
|
$40,166.67
|
|
Reston vs. Washington - Cost of childcare
pay 20.5% more for entertainment and sports
|
Reston
|
Washington
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$6.75
|
$8.00
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$5.62
|
$6.07
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$8.00
|
$13.00
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$100.00
|
$103.76
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$15.25
|
$16.75
|
|
Reston vs. Washington - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 11.3% more for clothing
|
Reston
|
Washington
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$59.22
|
$76.00
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$48.33
|
$48.40
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$98.40
|
$104.31
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$120.00
|
$133.22
|
|
Reston vs. Washington - 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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