Indiana vs. South Dakota Cost of Living Summary

Indiana is 16.3% more expensive than South Dakota.

Restaurants
pay 2.5% more in Indiana
Groceries
pay 13.1% less in Indiana
Transportation
pay 8.4% more in Indiana
Housing
pay 14.6% more in Indiana
Childcare
pay 2.2 times more in Indiana
Entertainment and Sports
pay 5.3% less in Indiana
Clothing
pay 10.0% less in Indiana

The cost of childcare, housing, transportation, and restaurants in Indiana are more expensive than in South Dakota. Expenses including groceries, clothing, and entertainment and sports are lower in Indiana. Notably, childcare is significantly more expensive in Indiana.

Indiana vs. South Dakota Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Indiana instead of South Dakota, you would:

pay 2.5% more for restaurants

 
South Dakota
Indiana
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant $12.33
 
$15.81
 
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
$10.19
 
$9.71
 
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) $3.03
 
$2.38
 

Improve prices ·

pay 13.1% less for groceries

 
South Dakota
Indiana
Bread
1 loaf
$3.01
 
$2.58
 
Local cheese (8 oz) $5.97
 
$5.50
 
Milk (1 gallon) $3.68
 
$3.03
 

Improve prices ·

pay 8.4% more for transportation

 
South Dakota
Indiana
Gasoline (1 gallon) $3.00
 
$3.12
 
Monthly public transit pass $30.00
 
$35.90
 
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) $35,568.55
 
$34,736.39
 

Improve prices ·

pay 14.6% more for housing

 
South Dakota
Indiana
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
$49.40
 
$66.33
 
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area $1,053.00
 
$1,248.79
 
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center $974.82
 
$1,049.83
 

Improve prices ·

pay 2.2 times more for childcare

 
South Dakota
Indiana
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly $715.00
 
$1,182.36
 
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters $7,800.00
 
$20,898.23
 

Improve prices ·

pay 5.3% less for entertainment and sports

 
South Dakota
Indiana
Domestic/local beer (1 pint) $4.42
 
$5.03
 
Cappuccino in mid-range area $4.69
 
$4.73
 
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
$9.38
 
$8.08
 

Improve prices ·

pay 10.0% less for clothing

 
South Dakota
Indiana
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
$47.89
 
$44.56
 
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
$42.78
 
$37.32
 
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
$89.39
 
$85.58
 

Improve prices ·
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
Share this

Help us improve these prices

MyLifeElsewhere is a collaborative project. Please enter price information for your location to help assist us in making these comparisons more accurate. Learn more

ASK THE ELSEWHERE COMMUNITY

Join the Elsewhere community and ask a question about Indiana or South Dakota. It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.