Cost of living comparison

compared to

Belgium vs. United States Cost of Living Summary

Belgium is 16.0% cheaper than United States overall.

Restaurants
pay 12.5% more in Belgium
Groceries
pay 21.4% less in Belgium
Transportation
pay 20.9% more in Belgium
Housing
pay 36.3% less in Belgium
Childcare
pay 22.5% less in Belgium
Entertainment and Sports
pay 14.5% less in Belgium
Clothing
pay 27.1% more in Belgium

The cost of clothing, transportation, and restaurants in Belgium are more expensive than in United States. Expenses including housing, childcare, groceries, and entertainment and sports are lower in Belgium.

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Belgium vs. United States Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Belgium instead of United States, you would:

pay 12.5% more for restaurants

 
United States
Belgium
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant $19.86
 
 $21.51
€19.30
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
 $11.42
 
 $12.72
€11.41
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) $2.67
 
 $3.15
€2.82
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pay 21.4% less for groceries

 
United States
Belgium
Bread
1 loaf
 $3.63
 
 $2.56
€2.29
Local cheese (8 oz) $6.52
 
 $7.21
€6.46
Milk (1 gallon) $3.98
 
 $4.74
€4.25
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pay 20.9% more for transportation

 
United States
Belgium
Gasoline (1 gallon) $4.01
 
 $7.52
€6.75
Monthly public transit pass $66.70
 
 $50.17
€45.01
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) $34,164.82
 
 $34,462.94
€30,918.43
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pay 36.3% less for housing

 
United States
Belgium
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
 $70.22
 
 $51.15
€45.89
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area $1,681.01
 
 $940.80
€844.04
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center $1,404.28
 
 $826.78
€741.75
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pay 22.5% less for childcare

 
United States
Belgium
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly $1,450.99
 
 $923.48
€828.50
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters $24,361.50
 
 $22,984.85
€20,620.86
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pay 14.5% less for entertainment and sports

 
United States
Belgium
Domestic/local beer (1 pint) $6.00
 
 $4.94
€4.43
Cappuccino in mid-range area $5.31
 
 $4.03
€3.61
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
 $10.42
 
 $12.32
€11.05
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pay 27.1% more for clothing

 
United States
Belgium
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
 $53.15
 
 $100.04
€89.75
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
 $41.88
 
 $43.19
€38.75
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
 $89.76
 
 $96.42
€86.50
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We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world. Sources: MyLifeElsewhere's cost-of-living dataset (prices updated November 2026). How we calculate this

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Compare further: United States vs. Belgium

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1,627 people moved from United States to Belgium.
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→
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