Cost of living comparison
compared to
Iowa vs. Utah Cost of Living Summary
Iowa is 0.9% cheaper than Utah.
- Restaurants
-
pay 0.2% less in Iowa
- Groceries
-
pay 3.4% less in Iowa
- Transportation
-
pay 17.1% less in Iowa
- Housing
-
pay 14.7% less in Iowa
- Childcare
-
pay 18.5% more in Iowa
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 11.4% more in Iowa
- Clothing
-
pay 1.0% less in Iowa
The cost of childcare and entertainment and sports in Iowa are more expensive than in Utah. Expenses including transportation, housing, groceries, clothing, and restaurants are lower in Iowa.
Iowa vs. Utah Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Iowa instead of Utah, you would:
pay 0.2% less for restaurants
|
Utah
|
Iowa
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$16.42
|
$15.83
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$11.31
|
$10.57
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.31
|
$2.46
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$1.76
|
$1.82
|
|
Utah vs. Iowa - Cost of restaurants
pay 3.4% less for groceries
|
Utah
|
Iowa
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$3.19
|
$2.77
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$6.12
|
$5.89
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$3.39
|
$3.33
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$3.96
|
$3.30
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$4.90
|
$4.57
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$2.25
|
$1.96
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.87
|
$0.65
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.77
|
$1.93
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$1.77
|
$1.93
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.95
|
$0.99
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.09
|
$1.30
|
|
Utah vs. Iowa - Cost of groceries
pay 17.1% less for transportation
|
Utah
|
Iowa
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$3.31
|
$3.02
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$85.00
|
$38.07
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$33,857.73
|
$28,093.10
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$13.72
|
$15.46
|
|
Utah vs. Iowa - Cost of transportation
pay 14.7% less for housing
|
Utah
|
Iowa
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$67.73
|
$65.62
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,464.04
|
$1,069.66
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,230.25
|
$852.78
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$130.51
|
$133.13
|
|
Utah vs. Iowa - Cost of housing
pay 18.5% more for childcare
|
Utah
|
Iowa
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$960.50
|
$1,152.45
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$16,156.25
|
$18,898.50
|
|
Utah vs. Iowa - Cost of childcare
pay 11.4% more for entertainment and sports
|
Utah
|
Iowa
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$5.64
|
$4.44
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$4.93
|
$5.43
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$9.31
|
$8.55
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$39.52
|
$63.76
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$11.83
|
$13.58
|
|
Utah vs. Iowa - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 1.0% less for clothing
|
Utah
|
Iowa
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$50.99
|
$55.34
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$40.68
|
$41.65
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$93.83
|
$81.56
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$108.85
|
$106.86
|
|
Utah vs. Iowa - 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
Change currency:
Help us improve these prices
MyLifeElsewhere is a collaborative project. Please enter price information for your location to help assist us in making these comparisons more accurate.
Learn more
ASK THE ELSEWHERE COMMUNITY
Join the Elsewhere community and ask a question about Iowa or Utah. It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.