Cost of living comparison
compared to
Bethesda vs. Reykjavik Cost of Living Summary
Bethesda is 50.0% more expensive than Reykjavik.
- Restaurants
-
pay 35.2% less in Bethesda
- Groceries
-
pay 23.7% less in Bethesda
- Transportation
-
pay 39.3% less in Bethesda
- Housing
-
pay 0.6% less in Bethesda
- Childcare
-
pay 5.9 times more in Bethesda
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 3.2% less in Bethesda
- Clothing
-
pay 37.9% less in Bethesda
Expenses including transportation, clothing, restaurants, groceries, entertainment and sports, and housing are lower in Bethesda. Notably, childcare is significantly more expensive in Bethesda.
Bethesda vs. Reykjavik Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Bethesda instead of Reykjavik, you would:
pay 35.2% less for restaurants
|
Reykjavik
|
Bethesda
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$27.48
ISK3,372
|
$16.50
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$22.76
ISK2,793
|
$8.00
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$3.34
ISK409
|
$2.50
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.70
ISK331
|
$2.40
|
|
Reykjavik vs. Bethesda - Cost of restaurants
pay 23.7% less for groceries
|
Reykjavik
|
Bethesda
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$4.63
ISK569
|
$3.97
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$9.44
ISK1,158
|
$4.38
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$7.63
ISK936
|
$3.58
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$6.50
ISK798
|
$4.33
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$11.29
ISK1,386
|
$4.87
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.59
ISK195
|
$2.08
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$1.17
ISK143
|
$0.63
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.49
ISK183
|
$1.86
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$2.54
ISK311
|
$1.90
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.70
ISK208
|
$0.99
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.13
ISK139
|
$1.22
|
|
Reykjavik vs. Bethesda - Cost of groceries
pay 39.3% less for transportation
|
Reykjavik
|
Bethesda
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$9.66
ISK1,185
|
$3.16
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$88.58
ISK10,870
|
$100.00
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$50,771.00
ISK6M
|
$23,000.00
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$28.07
ISK3,444
|
$14.58
|
|
Reykjavik vs. Bethesda - Cost of transportation
pay 0.6% less for housing
|
Reykjavik
|
Bethesda
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$81.97
ISK10,058
|
$62.50
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$2,259.48
ISK277K
|
$2,250.00
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$2,034.90
ISK250K
|
$1,866.67
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$60.87
ISK7,470
|
$79.25
|
|
Reykjavik vs. Bethesda - Cost of housing
pay 5.9 times more for childcare
|
Reykjavik
|
Bethesda
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$327.78
ISK40,222
|
$3,175.00
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$30,711.08
ISK4M
|
$65,000.00
|
|
Reykjavik vs. Bethesda - Cost of childcare
pay 3.2% less for entertainment and sports
|
Reykjavik
|
Bethesda
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$13.12
ISK1,610
|
$5.00
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$6.17
ISK758
|
$5.60
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$13.94
ISK1,710
|
$14.00
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$87.35
ISK10,719
|
$141.00
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$17.18
ISK2,109
|
$16.00
|
|
Reykjavik vs. Bethesda - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 37.9% less for clothing
|
Reykjavik
|
Bethesda
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$145.10
ISK17,805
|
$70.00
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$63.97
ISK7,850
|
$56.67
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$193.43
ISK23,736
|
$115.00
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$248.79
ISK30,529
|
$130.00
|
|
Reykjavik vs. Bethesda - 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: February 2026
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