Cost of living comparison
compared to
Houston vs. Tennessee Cost of Living Summary
Houston is 5.4% more expensive than Tennessee.
- Restaurants
-
pay 2.4% more in Houston
- Groceries
-
pay 9.4% less in Houston
- Transportation
-
pay 18.8% more in Houston
- Housing
-
pay 1.9% more in Houston
- Childcare
-
pay 19.6% more in Houston
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 9.1% more in Houston
- Clothing
-
pay 4.4% less in Houston
The cost of childcare, transportation, entertainment and sports, restaurants, and housing in Houston are more expensive than in Tennessee. Expenses including groceries and clothing are lower in Houston.
Houston vs. Tennessee Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Houston instead of Tennessee, you would:
pay 2.4% more for restaurants
|
Tennessee
|
Houston
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$18.38
|
$20.00
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$10.61
|
$10.00
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.84
|
$2.76
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.04
|
$2.23
|
|
Tennessee vs. Houston - Cost of restaurants
pay 9.4% less for groceries
|
Tennessee
|
Houston
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$3.09
|
$3.23
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$5.60
|
$6.32
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$3.94
|
$3.44
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$4.02
|
$4.35
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$5.26
|
$5.20
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$2.81
|
$1.88
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.68
|
$0.67
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.62
|
$1.67
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$2.00
|
$1.12
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.27
|
$1.20
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.55
|
$1.05
|
|
Tennessee vs. Houston - Cost of groceries
pay 18.8% more for transportation
|
Tennessee
|
Houston
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$2.85
|
$2.81
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$43.19
|
$75.00
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$32,576.40
|
$36,278.39
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$15.68
|
$14.39
|
|
Tennessee vs. Houston - Cost of transportation
pay 1.9% more for housing
|
Tennessee
|
Houston
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$68.00
|
$70.76
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,440.17
|
$1,660.33
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,280.54
|
$1,287.77
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$166.18
|
$145.65
|
|
Tennessee vs. Houston - Cost of housing
pay 19.6% more for childcare
|
Tennessee
|
Houston
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$1,018.45
|
$1,258.33
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$22,585.44
|
$26,120.00
|
|
Tennessee vs. Houston - Cost of childcare
pay 9.1% more for entertainment and sports
|
Tennessee
|
Houston
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$5.33
|
$6.00
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$5.22
|
$5.41
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$8.78
|
$9.95
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$36.70
|
$37.29
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$13.08
|
$15.00
|
|
Tennessee vs. Houston - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 4.4% less for clothing
|
Tennessee
|
Houston
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$50.54
|
$45.57
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$46.28
|
$44.00
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$94.58
|
$98.95
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$125.74
|
$116.43
|
|
Tennessee 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: December 2025
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