Cost of living comparison
compared to
Albuquerque vs. Tucson Cost of Living Summary
Albuquerque is 7.6% more expensive than Tucson.
- Restaurants
-
pay 13.5% less in Albuquerque
- Groceries
-
pay 1.9% more in Albuquerque
- Transportation
-
pay 4.1% more in Albuquerque
- Housing
-
pay 17.3% less in Albuquerque
- Childcare
-
pay 61.2% more in Albuquerque
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 4.9% more in Albuquerque
- Clothing
-
pay 11.7% more in Albuquerque
The cost of childcare, clothing, entertainment and sports, transportation, and groceries in Albuquerque are more expensive than in Tucson. Expenses including housing and restaurants are lower in Albuquerque.
Albuquerque vs. Tucson Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Albuquerque instead of Tucson, you would:
pay 13.5% less for restaurants
|
Tucson
|
Albuquerque
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$19.00
|
$17.00
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$12.00
|
$10.00
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.83
|
$2.73
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.40
|
$1.84
|
|
Tucson vs. Albuquerque - Cost of restaurants
pay 1.9% more for groceries
|
Tucson
|
Albuquerque
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$3.29
|
$2.97
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$5.82
|
$5.94
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$3.23
|
$3.94
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$4.35
|
$4.41
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$5.64
|
$4.53
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$2.08
|
$2.24
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.87
|
$0.68
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.75
|
$1.75
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$1.79
|
$2.37
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.12
|
$1.20
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.24
|
$1.25
|
|
Tucson vs. Albuquerque - Cost of groceries
pay 4.1% more for transportation
|
Tucson
|
Albuquerque
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$3.40
|
$2.99
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass | ?? | ?? | |
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$36,113.30
|
$29,500.00
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$13.69
|
$19.51
|
|
Tucson vs. Albuquerque - Cost of transportation
pay 17.3% less for housing
|
Tucson
|
Albuquerque
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$83.95
|
$68.80
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,258.25
|
$1,155.56
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,134.62
|
$1,024.33
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$197.85
|
$131.92
|
|
Tucson vs. Albuquerque - Cost of housing
pay 61.2% more for childcare
|
Tucson
|
Albuquerque
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$1,091.67
|
$1,480.00
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$15,605.00
|
$29,163.00
|
|
Tucson vs. Albuquerque - Cost of childcare
pay 4.9% more for entertainment and sports
|
Tucson
|
Albuquerque
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$6.00
|
$6.00
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$5.38
|
$5.06
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$9.22
|
$10.00
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$40.08
|
$43.88
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$13.00
|
$14.00
|
|
Tucson vs. Albuquerque - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 11.7% more for clothing
|
Tucson
|
Albuquerque
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$47.22
|
$47.50
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$41.00
|
$50.00
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$87.50
|
$105.62
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$111.67
|
$115.50
|
|
Tucson vs. Albuquerque - 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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