Cost of living comparison
compared to
District of Columbia vs. Virgin Islands Cost of Living Summary
District of Columbia is 8.3% more expensive than Virgin Islands overall.
- Restaurants
-
pay 6.9% more in District of Columbia
- Groceries
-
pay 35.2% less in District of Columbia
- Transportation
-
pay 8.1% less in District of Columbia
- Housing
-
pay 49.2% more in District of Columbia
- Childcare
-
pay 2.2 times more in District of Columbia
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 19.6% more in District of Columbia
- Clothing
-
pay 27.0% less in District of Columbia
The cost of childcare, housing, entertainment and sports, and restaurants in District of Columbia are more expensive than in Virgin Islands. Expenses including groceries, clothing, and transportation are lower in District of Columbia. Notably, childcare is significantly more expensive in District of Columbia.
District of Columbia vs. Virgin Islands Cost Breakdown
If you lived in District of Columbia instead of Virgin Islands, you would:
pay 6.9% more for restaurants
|
Virgin Islands
|
District of Columbia
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$23.12
|
$28.00
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$12.83
|
$12.00
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$3.25
|
$3.17
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.47
|
$2.64
|
|
Virgin Islands vs. District of Columbia - Cost of restaurants
pay 35.2% less for groceries
|
Virgin Islands
|
District of Columbia
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$6.72
|
$4.11
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$5.66
|
$8.53
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$10.73
|
$4.95
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$9.63
|
$5.64
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$8.79
|
$7.63
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$3.90
|
$3.17
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$5.00
|
$1.06
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$3.75
|
$2.27
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$5.89
|
$2.64
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.87
|
$1.29
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$3.07
|
$1.73
|
|
Virgin Islands vs. District of Columbia - Cost of groceries
pay 8.1% less for transportation
|
Virgin Islands
|
District of Columbia
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$5.03
|
$4.19
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$60.00
|
$120.00
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$50,000.00
|
$36,375.00
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$44.85
|
$16.73
|
|
Virgin Islands vs. District of Columbia - Cost of transportation
pay 49.2% more for housing
|
Virgin Islands
|
District of Columbia
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$100.17
|
$77.77
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,283.33
|
$2,717.33
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,200.00
|
$2,228.89
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$395.95
|
$161.22
|
|
Virgin Islands vs. District of Columbia - Cost of housing
pay 2.2 times more for childcare
|
Virgin Islands
|
District of Columbia
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$1,500.00
|
$3,221.33
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$17,750.00
|
$41,506.00
|
|
Virgin Islands vs. District of Columbia - Cost of childcare
pay 19.6% more for entertainment and sports
|
Virgin Islands
|
District of Columbia
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$6.38
|
$9.00
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$6.17
|
$6.15
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$5.00
|
$13.94
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$181.25
|
$114.30
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$11.00
|
$18.00
|
|
Virgin Islands vs. District of Columbia - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 27.0% less for clothing
|
Virgin Islands
|
District of Columbia
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$82.50
|
$71.42
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$81.00
|
$44.11
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$145.00
|
$104.50
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$150.00
|
$125.16
|
|
Virgin Islands vs. District of Columbia - Cost of clothing
We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world. Sources: MyLifeElsewhere's cost-of-living dataset (prices updated October 2026). How we calculate this
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Compare further: Virgin Islands vs. District of Columbia
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Quality of Life Comparison · 3 statistics
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Size Comparison · See true size
Virgin Islands is about 11 times bigger than District of Columbia.
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Moving from Virgin Islands to District of Columbia · Cost, visas & climate
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See the
cost of living in Virgin Islands vs. United States.
This provides a comparison of the average cost of living from cities within Virgin Islands and United States.
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