Cost of living comparison
compared to
North Charleston vs. Washington Cost of Living Summary
North Charleston is 20.1% cheaper than Washington.
- Restaurants
-
pay 10.2% less in North Charleston
- Groceries
-
pay 1.8% less in North Charleston
- Transportation
-
pay 19.3% less in North Charleston
- Housing
-
pay 3.2% less in North Charleston
- Childcare
-
pay 56.2% less in North Charleston
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 33.1% less in North Charleston
- Clothing
-
pay 17.2% less in North Charleston
Expenses including childcare, entertainment and sports, transportation, clothing, restaurants, and housing are lower in North Charleston.
North Charleston vs. Washington Cost Breakdown
If you lived in North Charleston instead of Washington, you would:
pay 10.2% less for restaurants
|
Washington
|
North Charleston
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$25.00
|
$21.50
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$12.00
|
$12.00
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$3.20
|
$3.00
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.79
|
$2.50
|
|
Washington vs. North Charleston - Cost of restaurants
pay 1.8% less for groceries
|
Washington
|
North Charleston
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$4.43
|
$3.67
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$8.04
|
$7.93
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$4.19
|
$3.94
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$4.55
|
$4.73
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$7.74
|
$6.25
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$2.95
|
$4.04
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.92
|
$0.83
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$2.20
|
$2.12
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$3.00
|
$2.47
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.35
|
$1.95
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.64
|
$1.15
|
|
Washington vs. North Charleston - Cost of groceries
pay 19.3% less for transportation
|
Washington
|
North Charleston
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$3.53
|
$2.99
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$77.50
|
$50.00
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$35,699.74
|
$35,699.74
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$16.73
|
$15.53
|
|
Washington vs. North Charleston - Cost of transportation
pay 3.2% less for housing
|
Washington
|
North Charleston
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$69.41
|
$83.60
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$2,568.48
|
$2,026.67
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$2,088.16
|
$1,500.00
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$146.54
|
$170.33
|
|
Washington vs. North Charleston - Cost of housing
pay 56.2% less for childcare
|
Washington
|
North Charleston
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$2,650.00
|
$1,366.67
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$40,166.67
|
$14,400.00
|
|
Washington vs. North Charleston - Cost of childcare
pay 33.1% less for entertainment and sports
|
Washington
|
North Charleston
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$8.00
|
$6.00
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$6.07
|
$5.92
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$13.00
|
$8.00
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$103.76
|
$17.49
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$16.75
|
$14.00
|
|
Washington vs. North Charleston - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 17.2% less for clothing
|
Washington
|
North Charleston
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$76.00
|
$55.00
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$48.40
|
$36.00
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$104.31
|
$95.80
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$133.22
|
$123.50
|
|
Washington vs. North Charleston - 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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