Cost of living comparison
compared to
Rhode Island vs. Washington Cost of Living Summary
Rhode Island is 3.6% more expensive than Washington.
- Restaurants
-
pay 4.9% more in Rhode Island
- Groceries
-
pay 15.4% more in Rhode Island
- Transportation
-
pay 10.0% more in Rhode Island
- Housing
-
pay 15.5% more in Rhode Island
- Childcare
-
pay 0.6% less in Rhode Island
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 1.3% more in Rhode Island
- Clothing
-
pay 21.5% less in Rhode Island
The cost of housing, groceries, transportation, restaurants, and entertainment and sports in Rhode Island are more expensive than in Washington. Expenses including clothing and childcare are lower in Rhode Island.
Rhode Island vs. Washington Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Rhode Island instead of Washington, you would:
pay 4.9% more for restaurants
|
Washington
|
Rhode Island
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$20.22
|
$20.33
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$12.00
|
$13.33
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.63
|
$2.65
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.05
|
$2.19
|
|
Washington vs. Rhode Island - Cost of restaurants
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pay 15.4% more for groceries
|
Washington
|
Rhode Island
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$3.94
|
$3.99
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$7.07
|
$6.34
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$4.20
|
$4.86
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$4.68
|
$4.99
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$5.75
|
$5.50
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$2.30
|
$2.68
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.86
|
$1.16
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$2.02
|
$2.23
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$2.09
|
$2.51
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.20
|
$1.69
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.24
|
$1.70
|
|
Washington vs. Rhode Island - Cost of groceries
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pay 10.0% more for transportation
|
Washington
|
Rhode Island
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$4.20
|
$3.21
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$67.70
|
$70.00
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$34,322.93
|
$36,181.63
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$17.81
|
$27.61
|
|
Washington vs. Rhode Island - Cost of transportation
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pay 15.5% more for housing
|
Washington
|
Rhode Island
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$72.42
|
$65.25
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,724.04
|
$2,195.21
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,522.88
|
$1,880.56
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$141.51
|
$171.52
|
|
Washington vs. Rhode Island - Cost of housing
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pay 0.6% less for childcare
|
Washington
|
Rhode Island
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$1,634.82
|
$1,353.94
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$25,866.06
|
$30,000.00
|
|
Washington vs. Rhode Island - Cost of childcare
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pay 1.3% more for entertainment and sports
|
Washington
|
Rhode Island
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$6.54
|
$6.42
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$5.33
|
$4.71
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$11.03
|
$12.17
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$56.25
|
$62.00
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$14.46
|
$14.42
|
|
Washington vs. Rhode Island - Cost of entertainment and sports
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pay 21.5% less for clothing
|
Washington
|
Rhode Island
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$49.71
|
$43.10
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$41.67
|
$29.67
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$88.77
|
$73.83
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$108.22
|
$78.89
|
|
Washington vs. Rhode Island - Cost of clothing
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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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