Cost of living comparison
compared to
Iowa vs. Virgin Islands Cost of Living Summary
Iowa is 24.7% cheaper than Virgin Islands overall.
- Restaurants
-
pay 20.6% less in Iowa
- Groceries
-
pay 52.6% less in Iowa
- Transportation
-
pay 45.6% less in Iowa
- Housing
-
pay 36.0% less in Iowa
- Childcare
-
pay 6.0% more in Iowa
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 1.8% more in Iowa
- Clothing
-
pay 26.1% less in Iowa
The cost of childcare and entertainment and sports in Iowa are more expensive than in Virgin Islands. Expenses including groceries, transportation, housing, clothing, and restaurants are lower in Iowa.
Iowa vs. Virgin Islands Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Iowa instead of Virgin Islands, you would:
pay 20.6% less for restaurants
|
Virgin Islands
|
Iowa
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$25.50
|
$15.83
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$10.48
|
$10.57
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$3.10
|
$2.46
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.42
|
$1.82
|
|
Virgin Islands vs. Iowa - Cost of restaurants
pay 52.6% less for groceries
|
Virgin Islands
|
Iowa
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$6.43
|
$2.77
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$8.40
|
$5.89
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$9.85
|
$3.33
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$7.46
|
$3.30
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$11.78
|
$4.57
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$4.66
|
$1.96
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$2.67
|
$0.65
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$3.50
|
$1.93
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$4.69
|
$1.93
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.28
|
$0.99
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$2.53
|
$1.30
|
|
Virgin Islands vs. Iowa - Cost of groceries
pay 45.6% less for transportation
|
Virgin Islands
|
Iowa
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$5.28
|
$3.02
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$60.00
|
$38.07
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$45,000.00
|
$28,093.10
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$44.85
|
$15.46
|
|
Virgin Islands vs. Iowa - Cost of transportation
pay 36.0% less for housing
|
Virgin Islands
|
Iowa
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$98.46
|
$65.62
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,513.89
|
$1,069.66
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,216.50
|
$852.78
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$272.68
|
$133.13
|
|
Virgin Islands vs. Iowa - Cost of housing
pay 6.0% more for childcare
|
Virgin Islands
|
Iowa
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$1,287.50
|
$1,152.45
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$15,433.33
|
$18,898.50
|
|
Virgin Islands vs. Iowa - Cost of childcare
pay 1.8% more for entertainment and sports
|
Virgin Islands
|
Iowa
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$6.50
|
$4.44
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$6.93
|
$5.43
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$4.50
|
$8.55
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$118.33
|
$63.76
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$11.50
|
$13.58
|
|
Virgin Islands vs. Iowa - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 26.1% less for clothing
|
Virgin Islands
|
Iowa
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$71.67
|
$55.34
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$62.33
|
$41.65
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$146.25
|
$81.56
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$111.67
|
$106.86
|
|
Virgin Islands 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
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