Cost of living comparison
compared to
Salt Lake City vs. United States Cost of Living Summary
Salt Lake City is 3.8% cheaper than United States overall.
- Restaurants
-
pay 7.0% less in Salt Lake City
- Groceries
-
pay 8.3% less in Salt Lake City
- Transportation
-
pay 3.5% more in Salt Lake City
- Housing
-
pay 0.5% more in Salt Lake City
- Childcare
-
pay 22.9% less in Salt Lake City
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 5.2% less in Salt Lake City
- Clothing
-
pay 13.1% more in Salt Lake City
The cost of clothing, transportation, and housing in Salt Lake City are more expensive than in United States. Expenses including childcare, groceries, restaurants, and entertainment and sports are lower in Salt Lake City.
Salt Lake City vs. United States Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Salt Lake City instead of United States, you would:
pay 7.0% less for restaurants
|
United States
|
Salt Lake City
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$19.45
|
$18.00
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$11.12
|
$11.25
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.56
|
$2.23
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.00
|
$1.83
|
|
United States vs. Salt Lake City - Cost of restaurants
pay 8.3% less for groceries
|
United States
|
Salt Lake City
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$3.56
|
$3.23
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$6.50
|
$6.43
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$3.97
|
$3.47
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$4.27
|
$4.23
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$5.41
|
$4.60
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$2.37
|
$2.17
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.78
|
$0.86
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$2.04
|
$1.63
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$2.21
|
$2.00
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.34
|
$1.16
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.38
|
$1.24
|
|
United States vs. Salt Lake City - Cost of groceries
pay 3.5% more for transportation
|
United States
|
Salt Lake City
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$3.41
|
$3.36
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$65.85
|
$85.00
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$32,336.38
|
$34,677.84
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$17.61
|
$13.93
|
|
United States vs. Salt Lake City - Cost of transportation
pay 0.5% more for housing
|
United States
|
Salt Lake City
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$68.97
|
$80.00
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,664.59
|
$1,633.85
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,416.15
|
$1,392.27
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$150.19
|
$134.44
|
|
United States vs. Salt Lake City - Cost of housing
pay 22.9% less for childcare
|
United States
|
Salt Lake City
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$1,387.27
|
$1,044.00
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$23,196.46
|
$18,333.33
|
|
United States vs. Salt Lake City - Cost of childcare
pay 5.2% less for entertainment and sports
|
United States
|
Salt Lake City
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$5.84
|
$7.00
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$5.15
|
$5.19
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$9.90
|
$9.00
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$51.45
|
$30.67
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$13.64
|
$14.00
|
|
United States vs. Salt Lake City - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 13.1% more for clothing
|
United States
|
Salt Lake City
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$51.08
|
$70.00
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$41.81
|
$44.17
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$87.56
|
$105.00
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$112.04
|
$100.83
|
|
United States vs. Salt Lake City - 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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