Cost of living comparison
compared to
Fort Collins vs. United States Cost of Living Summary
Fort Collins is 2.2% more expensive than United States overall.
- Restaurants
-
pay 9.9% more in Fort Collins
- Groceries
-
pay 14.0% less in Fort Collins
- Transportation
-
pay 0.3% more in Fort Collins
- Housing
-
pay 2.1% less in Fort Collins
- Childcare
-
pay 18.1% less in Fort Collins
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 4.2% more in Fort Collins
- Clothing
-
pay 34.9% more in Fort Collins
The cost of clothing, restaurants, entertainment and sports, and transportation in Fort Collins are more expensive than in United States. Expenses including childcare, groceries, and housing are lower in Fort Collins.
Fort Collins vs. United States Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Fort Collins instead of United States, you would:
pay 9.9% more for restaurants
|
United States
|
Fort Collins
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$19.45
|
$18.00
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$11.12
|
$12.00
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.56
|
$2.60
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.00
|
$2.75
|
|
United States vs. Fort Collins - Cost of restaurants
pay 14.0% less for groceries
|
United States
|
Fort Collins
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$3.56
|
$3.09
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$6.50
|
$5.51
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$3.97
|
$3.89
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$4.27
|
$4.33
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$5.41
|
$3.90
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$2.37
|
$1.76
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.78
|
$0.70
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$2.04
|
$1.95
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$2.21
|
$2.28
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.34
|
$1.05
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.38
|
$0.87
|
|
United States vs. Fort Collins - Cost of groceries
pay 0.3% more for transportation
|
United States
|
Fort Collins
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$3.41
|
$3.09
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$65.85
|
?? | |
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$32,336.38
|
$36,029.12
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$17.61
|
$17.41
|
|
United States vs. Fort Collins - Cost of transportation
pay 2.1% less for housing
|
United States
|
Fort Collins
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$68.97
|
$76.67
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,664.59
|
$1,783.33
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,416.15
|
$1,250.00
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$150.19
|
$127.72
|
|
United States vs. Fort Collins - Cost of housing
pay 18.1% less for childcare
|
United States
|
Fort Collins
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$1,387.27
|
$1,525.00
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$23,196.46
|
$12,500.00
|
|
United States vs. Fort Collins - Cost of childcare
pay 4.2% more for entertainment and sports
|
United States
|
Fort Collins
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$5.84
|
$7.00
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$5.15
|
$5.17
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$9.90
|
$9.50
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$51.45
|
$60.00
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$13.64
|
$12.00
|
|
United States vs. Fort Collins - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 34.9% more for clothing
|
United States
|
Fort Collins
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$51.08
|
$67.50
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$41.81
|
$91.67
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$87.56
|
$80.00
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$112.04
|
$108.33
|
|
United States vs. Fort Collins - 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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