Cost of living comparison

Sweden

compared to

United States

Boston vs. Stockholm Cost of Living Summary

Boston is 2.4 times more expensive than Stockholm.

Restaurants: pay 8.7% more in Boston
Groceries: pay 44.3% more in Boston
Transportation: pay 20.5% less in Boston
Housing: pay 82.0% more in Boston
Childcare: pay 9.5 times more in Boston
Entertainment and Sports: pay 24.4% more in Boston
Clothing: pay 18.3% less in Boston

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

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Boston vs. Stockholm Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Boston instead of Stockholm, you would:

Display currency: USD

pay 8.7% more for restaurants

	Stockholm	Boston
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$16.93 SEK163.29	$25.00	+47.7%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$11.64 SEK112.26	$12.00	+3.1%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$3.20 SEK30.83	$2.87	-10.2%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$2.55 SEK24.56	$2.40	-5.9%
Average			+8.7%

Stockholm vs. Boston - Cost of restaurants

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pay 44.3% more for groceries

	Stockholm	Boston
Bread 1 loaf	$3.44 SEK33.19	$4.16	+21.0%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$6.66 SEK64.22	$8.92	+33.9%
Milk (1 gallon)	$6.75 SEK65.15	$4.80	-28.9%
Eggs 1 dozen	$4.70 SEK45.35	$4.93	+4.8%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$6.13 SEK59.12	$6.15	+0.4%
Apples (1 lb)	$1.59 SEK15.35	$2.70	+69.5%
Bananas (1 lb)	$1.34 SEK12.94	$1.00	-25.2%
Oranges (1 lb)	$1.53 SEK14.79	$2.83	+84.7%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$2.08 SEK20.03	$3.61	+73.9%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$0.88 SEK8.50	$2.09	+137.6%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.84 SEK8.12	$1.81	+115.2%
Average			+44.3%

Stockholm vs. Boston - Cost of groceries

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pay 20.5% less for transportation

	Stockholm	Boston
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$6.94 SEK66.92	$3.46	-50.2%
Monthly public transit pass	$112.14 SEK1,081.77	$90.00	-19.7%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$33,800.39 SEK326K	$34,000.00	+0.6%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$18.94 SEK182.68	$16.52	-12.8%
Average			-20.5%

Stockholm vs. Boston - Cost of transportation

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pay 82.0% more for housing

	Stockholm	Boston
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$44.55 SEK429.79	$77.28	+73.5%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$1,570.17 SEK15,146.95	$3,451.79	+119.8%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$1,035.21 SEK9,986.40	$2,596.36	+150.8%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$183.26 SEK1,767.89	$153.30	-16.3%
Average			+82.0%

Stockholm vs. Boston - Cost of housing

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pay 9.5 times more for childcare

	Stockholm	Boston
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$161.61 SEK1,558.98	$2,793.33	+1628.5%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$15,445.56 SEK149K	$27,500.00	+78.0%
Average			+853.2%

Stockholm vs. Boston - Cost of childcare

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pay 24.4% more for entertainment and sports

	Stockholm	Boston
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$8.36 SEK80.62	$8.00	-4.3%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$5.17 SEK49.84	$5.36	+3.7%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$8.04 SEK77.56	$13.00	+61.7%
Monthly membership at local gym	$48.65 SEK469.30	$88.48	+81.9%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$19.04 SEK183.70	$15.00	-21.2%
Average			+24.4%

Stockholm vs. Boston - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 18.3% less for clothing

	Stockholm	Boston
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$100.97 SEK974.06	$69.87	-30.8%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$47.01 SEK453.46	$43.75	-6.9%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$123.10 SEK1,187.49	$107.71	-12.5%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$197.83 SEK1,908.41	$152.08	-23.1%
Average			-18.3%

Stockholm vs. Boston - Cost of clothing

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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: July 2026

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