Cost of living comparison
compared to
Norfolk vs. Virginia Beach Cost of Living Summary
Norfolk is 2.1% more expensive than Virginia Beach.
- Restaurants
-
pay 8.4% less in Norfolk
- Groceries
-
pay 26.8% more in Norfolk
- Transportation
-
pay 14.7% more in Norfolk
- Housing
-
pay 8.8% more in Norfolk
- Childcare
-
pay 8.5% less in Norfolk
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 8.4% less in Norfolk
- Clothing
-
pay 10.4% less in Norfolk
The cost of groceries, transportation, and housing in Norfolk are more expensive than in Virginia Beach. Expenses including clothing, childcare, restaurants, and entertainment and sports are lower in Norfolk.
Norfolk vs. Virginia Beach Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Norfolk instead of Virginia Beach, you would:
pay 8.4% less for restaurants
|
Virginia Beach
|
Norfolk
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$20.00
|
$20.00
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$12.00
|
$12.00
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.75
|
$2.37
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.14
|
$2.08
|
|
Virginia Beach vs. Norfolk - Cost of restaurants
pay 26.8% more for groceries
|
Virginia Beach
|
Norfolk
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$3.42
|
$4.07
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$5.79
|
$6.87
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$3.69
|
$3.69
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$3.86
|
$4.25
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$3.09
|
$5.21
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.16
|
$2.15
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.72
|
$0.63
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$2.29
|
$2.57
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$2.63
|
$2.94
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.04
|
$1.04
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.44
|
$1.44
|
|
Virginia Beach vs. Norfolk - Cost of groceries
pay 14.7% more for transportation
|
Virginia Beach
|
Norfolk
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$3.12
|
$3.12
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$70.00
|
$102.50
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$35,463.99
|
$34,689.37
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$15.09
|
$15.09
|
|
Virginia Beach vs. Norfolk - Cost of transportation
pay 8.8% more for housing
|
Virginia Beach
|
Norfolk
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$66.07
|
$67.64
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,751.40
|
$1,875.00
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,423.80
|
$1,625.00
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$128.02
|
$142.76
|
|
Virginia Beach vs. Norfolk - Cost of housing
pay 8.5% less for childcare
|
Virginia Beach
|
Norfolk
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$1,627.78
|
$1,490.00
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$16,105.33
|
$16,105.33
|
|
Virginia Beach vs. Norfolk - Cost of childcare
pay 8.4% less for entertainment and sports
|
Virginia Beach
|
Norfolk
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$6.00
|
$6.00
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$5.73
|
$5.27
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$9.00
|
$9.00
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$43.75
|
$40.00
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$12.00
|
$12.00
|
|
Virginia Beach vs. Norfolk - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 10.4% less for clothing
|
Virginia Beach
|
Norfolk
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$60.92
|
$51.78
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$47.33
|
$47.33
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$109.45
|
$103.08
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$125.00
|
$125.00
|
|
Virginia Beach vs. Norfolk - 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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