Cost of living comparison
compared to
Grand Rapids vs. Seattle Cost of Living Summary
Grand Rapids is 26.3% cheaper than Seattle.
- Restaurants
-
pay 26.4% less in Grand Rapids
- Groceries
-
pay 27.5% less in Grand Rapids
- Transportation
-
pay 14.9% less in Grand Rapids
- Housing
-
pay 31.3% less in Grand Rapids
- Childcare
-
pay 43.4% less in Grand Rapids
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 26.0% less in Grand Rapids
- Clothing
-
pay 14.3% less in Grand Rapids
Grand Rapids vs. Seattle Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Grand Rapids instead of Seattle, you would:
pay 26.4% less for restaurants
|
Seattle
|
Grand Rapids
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$25.00
|
$18.49
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$15.00
|
$11.00
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$3.00
|
$2.70
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.47
|
$1.41
|
|
Seattle vs. Grand Rapids - Cost of restaurants
pay 27.5% less for groceries
|
Seattle
|
Grand Rapids
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$5.23
|
$3.13
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$11.39
|
$7.68
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$5.40
|
$3.41
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$7.32
|
$3.46
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$7.35
|
$4.33
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$2.87
|
$2.23
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$1.26
|
$0.74
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$2.43
|
$2.53
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$3.18
|
$2.83
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.47
|
$0.97
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.57
|
$1.66
|
|
Seattle vs. Grand Rapids - Cost of groceries
pay 14.9% less for transportation
|
Seattle
|
Grand Rapids
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$4.55
|
$3.24
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$99.50
|
$47.00
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$36,656.56
|
$34,000.00
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$16.02
|
$20.70
|
|
Seattle vs. Grand Rapids - Cost of transportation
pay 31.3% less for housing
|
Seattle
|
Grand Rapids
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$78.37
|
$72.67
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$2,333.68
|
$1,691.67
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,900.00
|
$1,191.67
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$200.99
|
$93.79
|
|
Seattle vs. Grand Rapids - Cost of housing
pay 43.4% less for childcare
|
Seattle
|
Grand Rapids
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$2,200.00
|
$950.00
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$30,000.00
|
$21,000.00
|
|
Seattle vs. Grand Rapids - Cost of childcare
pay 26.0% less for entertainment and sports
|
Seattle
|
Grand Rapids
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$7.75
|
$6.00
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$6.04
|
$4.88
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$12.75
|
$9.00
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$85.87
|
$40.83
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$16.00
|
$15.00
|
|
Seattle vs. Grand Rapids - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 14.3% less for clothing
|
Seattle
|
Grand Rapids
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$69.52
|
$58.91
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$54.68
|
$47.50
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$116.24
|
$87.02
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$135.08
|
$130.00
|
|
Seattle vs. Grand Rapids - 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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