Is the cost of living everywhere in America pretty much the same (except housing)?

Submitted by atoz88 t3_z9765y in personalfinance

Let's say my housing is taken care of. Are some places in the US still cheaper than others? I mean, cars, food, travel, and healthcare (with Obamacare subsidies) are about the same everywhere I look. I guess gas is more expensive in some places. Do you see a big difference in the cost of living between, say, Denver, Dallas, Honolulu and Miami? Posting this here as it's part of my retirement planning/budgeting. Thanks.

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Werd2urGrandma t1_iyfbbwf wrote

Cars can be expensive in certain cities (both financial and time-cost) due to taxes and parking costs and food costs vary widely in the US. I live in the south in a small city and food costs are about half of you drive even an hour or two into the countryside.

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hopingtothrive t1_iyfbr5k wrote

If you buy a laptop from Amazon it's the same price. Gas, food, utilities, insurance, just about everything that is local is going to vary. Wages vary, transportation costs for good and services are affected. Everything is more expensive in Hawaii because it comes by boat.

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Rave-Unicorn-Votive t1_iyfch27 wrote

Even if the cost of electricity is the same, you'll spend more to cool a house in Tucson than Santa Monica.

Housing might be the single largest component, but there is variability in a lot of budget categories between different areas.

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No_Tension_280 t1_iyfd39c wrote

Obviously taxes. Prop tax varies even within the state. Things to do varies. Like in my I would imagine there are tons of things to do that cost$ , whereas in smaller cities, for instance, there would be less plays, and they'd be cheaper.

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Werewolfdad t1_iyfd4xp wrote

Essentially things you can buy online are mostly the same everywhere. Everything else can be quite different.

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