Cost of living comparison
compared to
Raleigh vs. Richmond Cost of Living Summary
Raleigh is 1.7% more expensive than Richmond.
Raleigh vs. Richmond Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Raleigh instead of Richmond, you would:
pay 5.5% less for restaurants
Richmond | Raleigh | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant | $21.50 | $20.00 | |
| Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar | $12.00 | $10.00 | |
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) | $2.25 | $2.37 | |
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) | $2.16 | $2.07 | |
Richmond vs. Raleigh - Cost of restaurants
pay 15.9% more for groceries
Richmond | Raleigh | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Bread 1 loaf | $4.00 | $4.07 | |
| Local cheese (8 oz) | $4.87 | $6.87 | |
| Milk (1 gallon) | $3.57 | $3.35 | |
| Eggs 1 dozen | $6.67 | $4.68 | |
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) | $5.64 | $5.21 | |
| Apples (1 lb) | $2.75 | $2.89 | |
| Bananas (1 lb) | $0.66 | $0.63 | |
| Oranges (1 lb) | $1.86 | $2.57 | |
| Tomatoes (1 lb) | $1.99 | $2.94 | |
| Potatoes (1 lb) | $1.26 | $1.68 | |
| Onions (1 lb) | $1.24 | $1.93 | |
Richmond vs. Raleigh - Cost of groceries
pay 1.1% less for transportation
Richmond | Raleigh | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) | $3.17 | $3.12 | |
| Monthly public transit pass | $60.00 | $45.00 | |
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) | $28,351.00 | $34,689.37 | |
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) | $14.93 | $14.90 | |
Richmond vs. Raleigh - Cost of transportation
pay 2.0% more for housing
Richmond | Raleigh | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl | $71.99 | $67.64 | |
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area | $1,607.14 | $1,775.64 | |
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center | $1,464.43 | $1,470.00 | |
| Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating | $138.22 | $142.76 | |
Richmond vs. Raleigh - Cost of housing
pay 3.0% less for childcare
Richmond | Raleigh | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly | $1,287.50 | $1,490.00 | |
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters | $30,776.00 | $24,083.25 | |
Richmond vs. Raleigh - Cost of childcare
pay 11.1% less for entertainment and sports
Richmond | Raleigh | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) | $6.00 | $5.88 | |
| Cappuccino in mid-range area | $5.21 | $5.27 | |
| Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar | $9.00 | $7.50 | |
| Monthly membership at local gym | $55.00 | $40.18 | |
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema | $15.00 | $15.00 | |
Richmond vs. Raleigh - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 14.7% more for clothing
Richmond | Raleigh | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Regular jeans Levi's brand | $63.33 | $51.78 | |
| Regular dress from H&M or similar store | $35.09 | $48.25 | |
| Running shoes Nike or Adidas | $82.14 | $103.08 | |
| Men's business shoes (leather) | $120.33 | $137.22 | |
Richmond vs. Raleigh - 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: June 2026
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