Cost of living comparison
compared to
Grand Forks vs. United States Cost of Living Summary
Grand Forks is 2.8% cheaper than United States overall.
- Restaurants
-
pay 13.2% more in Grand Forks
- Groceries
-
pay 2.8% more in Grand Forks
- Transportation
-
pay 24.1% less in Grand Forks
- Housing
-
pay 7.8% less in Grand Forks
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 2.1% more in Grand Forks
The cost of restaurants, groceries, and entertainment and sports in Grand Forks are more expensive than in United States. Expenses including transportation and housing are lower in Grand Forks.
Grand Forks vs. United States Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Grand Forks instead of United States, you would:
pay 13.2% more for restaurants
|
United States
|
Grand Forks
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$19.45
|
$21.50
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$11.12
|
$9.45
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.56
|
$2.75
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.00
|
$3.00
|
|
United States vs. Grand Forks - Cost of restaurants
pay 2.8% more for groceries
|
United States
|
Grand Forks
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$3.56
|
$3.52
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$6.50
|
$12.13
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$3.97
|
$4.24
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$4.27
|
$3.59
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$5.41
|
?? | |
| Apples (1 lb) |
$2.37
|
?? | |
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.78
|
$0.92
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$2.04
|
$2.00
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$2.21
|
$1.45
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.34
|
$1.00
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.38
|
$1.29
|
|
United States vs. Grand Forks - Cost of groceries
pay 24.1% less for transportation
|
United States
|
Grand Forks
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$3.41
|
$3.01
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$65.85
|
$42.00
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$32,336.38
|
?? | |
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$17.61
|
?? | |
United States vs. Grand Forks - Cost of transportation
pay 7.8% less for housing
|
United States
|
Grand Forks
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$68.97
|
$76.17
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,664.59
|
$1,000.00
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,416.15
|
$800.00
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$150.19
|
$213.15
|
|
United States vs. Grand Forks - Cost of housing
pay (unknown) more for childcare
|
United States
|
Grand Forks
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$1,387.27
|
?? | |
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$23,196.46
|
?? |
United States vs. Grand Forks - Cost of childcare
pay 2.1% more for entertainment and sports
|
United States
|
Grand Forks
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$5.84
|
$5.00
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$5.15
|
$5.00
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$9.90
|
$10.00
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$51.45
|
$60.00
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$13.64
|
$15.00
|
|
United States vs. Grand Forks - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay (unknown) more for clothing
|
United States
|
Grand Forks
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$51.08
|
?? | |
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$41.81
|
?? | |
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$87.56
|
?? | |
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$112.04
|
?? |
United States vs. Grand Forks - 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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