Cost of living comparison
compared to
San Luis Obispo vs. Washington Cost of Living Summary
San Luis Obispo is 13.9% cheaper than Washington.
- Restaurants
-
pay 12.0% less in San Luis Obispo
- Groceries
-
pay 32.7% less in San Luis Obispo
- Transportation
-
pay 16.5% more in San Luis Obispo
- Housing
-
pay 2.0% more in San Luis Obispo
- Childcare
-
pay 41.1% less in San Luis Obispo
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 28.1% less in San Luis Obispo
- Clothing
-
pay 1.7% less in San Luis Obispo
The cost of transportation and housing in San Luis Obispo are more expensive than in Washington. Expenses including childcare, groceries, entertainment and sports, restaurants, and clothing are lower in San Luis Obispo.
San Luis Obispo vs. Washington Cost Breakdown
If you lived in San Luis Obispo instead of Washington, you would:
pay 12.0% less for restaurants
|
Washington
|
San Luis Obispo
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$25.00
|
$24.00
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$12.00
|
$9.22
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$3.20
|
$2.76
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.79
|
$2.58
|
|
Washington vs. San Luis Obispo - Cost of restaurants
pay 32.7% less for groceries
|
Washington
|
San Luis Obispo
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$4.43
|
$3.45
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$8.04
|
$4.67
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$4.19
|
$4.17
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$4.55
|
$2.83
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$7.74
|
$4.75
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$2.95
|
$1.56
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.92
|
$0.86
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$2.20
|
$1.14
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$3.00
|
$1.50
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.35
|
$0.89
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.64
|
$1.09
|
|
Washington vs. San Luis Obispo - Cost of groceries
pay 16.5% more for transportation
|
Washington
|
San Luis Obispo
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$3.53
|
$4.64
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$77.50
|
$60.00
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$35,699.74
|
$30,323.95
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$16.73
|
$28.87
|
|
Washington vs. San Luis Obispo - Cost of transportation
pay 2.0% more for housing
|
Washington
|
San Luis Obispo
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$69.41
|
$66.60
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$2,568.48
|
$2,280.00
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$2,088.16
|
$1,880.00
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$146.54
|
$195.00
|
|
Washington vs. San Luis Obispo - Cost of housing
pay 41.1% less for childcare
|
Washington
|
San Luis Obispo
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$2,650.00
|
$2,300.00
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$40,166.67
|
$12,489.48
|
|
Washington vs. San Luis Obispo - Cost of childcare
pay 28.1% less for entertainment and sports
|
Washington
|
San Luis Obispo
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$8.00
|
$8.00
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$6.07
|
$4.77
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$13.00
|
$10.96
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$103.76
|
$55.00
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$16.75
|
$12.00
|
|
Washington vs. San Luis Obispo - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 1.7% less for clothing
|
Washington
|
San Luis Obispo
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$76.00
|
$70.00
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$48.40
|
$50.00
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$104.31
|
$120.00
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$133.22
|
$110.00
|
|
Washington vs. San Luis Obispo - 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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