Cost of living comparison
compared to
Houston vs. Salt Lake City Cost of Living Summary
Houston is 4.0% more expensive than Salt Lake City.
Houston vs. Salt Lake City Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Houston instead of Salt Lake City, you would:
pay 11.4% more for restaurants
Salt Lake City | Houston | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant | $18.00 | $20.00 | |
| Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar | $11.25 | $10.00 | |
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) | $2.23 | $2.76 | |
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) | $1.83 | $2.23 | |
Salt Lake City vs. Houston - Cost of restaurants
pay 7.0% less for groceries
Salt Lake City | Houston | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Bread 1 loaf | $3.23 | $3.23 | |
| Local cheese (8 oz) | $6.43 | $6.32 | |
| Milk (1 gallon) | $3.47 | $3.44 | |
| Eggs 1 dozen | $4.23 | $4.35 | |
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) | $4.60 | $5.20 | |
| Apples (1 lb) | $2.17 | $1.88 | |
| Bananas (1 lb) | $0.86 | $0.67 | |
| Oranges (1 lb) | $1.63 | $1.67 | |
| Tomatoes (1 lb) | $2.00 | $1.12 | |
| Potatoes (1 lb) | $1.16 | $1.20 | |
| Onions (1 lb) | $1.24 | $1.05 | |
Salt Lake City vs. Houston - Cost of groceries
pay 5.1% less for transportation
Salt Lake City | Houston | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) | $3.36 | $2.81 | |
| Monthly public transit pass | $85.00 | $75.00 | |
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) | $34,677.84 | $36,278.39 | |
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) | $13.93 | $14.39 | |
Salt Lake City vs. Houston - Cost of transportation
pay 2.3% less for housing
Salt Lake City | Houston | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl | $80.00 | $70.76 | |
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area | $1,633.85 | $1,660.33 | |
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center | $1,392.27 | $1,287.77 | |
| Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating | $134.44 | $145.65 | |
Salt Lake City vs. Houston - Cost of housing
pay 31.5% more for childcare
Salt Lake City | Houston | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly | $1,044.00 | $1,258.33 | |
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters | $18,333.33 | $26,120.00 | |
Salt Lake City vs. Houston - Cost of childcare
pay 5.9% more for entertainment and sports
Salt Lake City | Houston | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) | $7.00 | $6.00 | |
| Cappuccino in mid-range area | $5.19 | $5.41 | |
| Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar | $9.00 | $9.95 | |
| Monthly membership at local gym | $30.67 | $37.29 | |
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema | $14.00 | $15.00 | |
Salt Lake City vs. Houston - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 6.4% less for clothing
Salt Lake City | Houston | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Regular jeans Levi's brand | $70.00 | $45.57 | |
| Regular dress from H&M or similar store | $44.17 | $44.00 | |
| Running shoes Nike or Adidas | $105.00 | $98.95 | |
| Men's business shoes (leather) | $100.83 | $116.43 | |
Salt Lake City vs. Houston - 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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