Belgium vs United States - Cost of Living Comparison

Updated:

Livingcost

Belgium United States
🚶 Cost of living one person
$1540
$2433
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Cost of living Family
$3611
$5667
🏠 One person rent
$821
$1552
🏘️ Family rent
$1301
$2714
🍽️ Food expenses
$514
$618
🚐 Transport expenses
$81.8
$104
💳 Monthly salary after tax
$2647
$4694
💸 GDP per capita
$49927
$76330
😃 Human freedom index
8.33
8.39
❤️ Life expectancy
81.9
76.3
👮 Corruption perceptions index
73
69
🌐 English speaking %
59%
95.5%
🎓 Higher education
97
100
😀 Quality of life
88
86
🏙️ Population
11.6M
331M

The average cost of living in Belgium ($1540) is 37% less expensive than in the United States ($2433). Belgium ranked 30th vs 7th for the United States in the list of the most expensive countries in the world.

The average after-tax salary is enough to cover living expenses for 1.7 months in Belgium compared to 1.9 months in the United States. Ranked 19th and 21st best countries to live in the world.

Salary adjustment calculator
the estimated difference in money purchasing power

Cost of living in Belgium vs United States infographic

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Prices in Belgium vs the United States

We calculate prices for Belgium and the United States as a population-weighted mean of 91 and 2202 cities, respectively. Since large cities tend to have a higher cost of living, it's better to visit specific city pages below for more relevant information.

Belgium United States
Eating Out
🍱 Lunch Menu
$17.7
$18.4
🥂 Dinner in a Restaurant, for 2
$76.8
$73.1
🥪 Fast food meal, equiv. McDonald's
$10.2
$10.5
🍻 Beer in a Pub, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$4.46
$6.08
 Cappuccino
$3.53
$5.09
🥤 Pepsi / Coke, 0.5 L or 16.9 fl oz
$2.79
$2.51
Rent & Utilities
🏙️ 1 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$740
$1611
🏡 Cheap 1 bedroom apartment, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$614
$1301
🏙️ 3 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$1235
$2861
🏡 Cheap 3 bedroom apartment, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$1002
$2352
🔌 Utility Bill one person, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$132
$122
🔌 Utility Bill for a Family, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$203
$188
🌐 Internet plan, 50 Mbps+ 1 month unlimited
$49.8
$67
🏦 Mortgage Interest Rate for 20 Years
3.32%
6.5%
🏙️ Apartment price to Buy in city Center, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$3873
$4763
🏡 House price to Buy in Suburbs, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$3159
$3852
Transportation
🚌 Local transport ticket
$2.74
$2.38
🎟️ Monthly ticket local transport
$50.4
$71.8
🚕 Taxi Ride, 8 km or 5 mi
$25.7
$18.4
 Gas / Petrol, 1 L or 0.26 gal
$1.91
$0.99
Groceries
🥛 Milk, 1 L or 1 qt
$1.19
$1.09
🍞 Bread, 0.5 kg or 1.1 lb
$2.21
$3.44
🍚 Rice, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.13
$4.32
🥚 Eggs, x12
$3.28
$3.89
🧀 Cheese, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$13.7
$13
🐔 Chicken Breast, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$10.9
$11.8
🥩 Round Steak, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$16.7
$16.4
🍏 Apples, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.44
$5.02
🍌 Banana, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.85
$1.78
🍊 Oranges, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.52
$4.43
🍅 Tomato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.71
$4.66
🥔 Potato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.71
$2.78
🧅 Onion, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.45
$2.87
🌊 Water, 1 L or 1 qt
$0.59
$1.41
🍹 Coca-Cola / Pepsi, 2 L or 67.6 fl oz
$2.69
$2.51
🍾 Wine (mid-priced), 750 mL bottle
$7.55
$14.4
🍺 Beer, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$1.84
$2.12
🚬 Cigarette pack
$8.33
$10.1
💊 Cold medicince, 1 week
$10.9
$9.27
🧴 Hair Shampoo
$4.07
$5.79
🧻 Toilet paper, 4 rolls
$2.01
$4.29
👄 Toothpaste, 1 tube
$2.69
$2.09
Other
🏋️ Gym Membership, 1 month
$33.4
$50
🎫 Cinema Ticket, 1 person
$12.4
$13.9
👩‍⚕️ Doctor's visit
$31.4
$116
💇 Haircut, simple
$18.7
$20.4
👖 Brand Jeans
$95.9
$53.2
👟 Brand Sneakers
$93.7
$89.3
👶 Daycare or Preschool, 1 month
$562
$1423
🏫 International Primary School, 1 year
$18692
$19463

Cost of living in other countries

Cost of living

Cities Comparison in Belgium vs the United States

More countries to compare

Cost of Living in Popular cities

In Belgium

City Cost of living Population
Antwerp
$1650
529K
Ghent
$1585
265K
Brussels
$1869
189K
Liege
$1439
195K
Charleroi
$1422
202K
Schaerbeek
$1682
133K
Anderlecht
$1659
121K
Mouscron
$1423
58.2K
Leuven
$1618
101K
Mons
$1405
95.3K
Namur
$1360
111K
Bruges
$1408
119K
Ostend
$1302
71.6K
Vilvoorde
$1599
44K
Aalst
$1678
88.9K
La Louviere
$1520
81K
Tournai
$1562
69.6K
Hasselt
$1445
77.7K
Mechelen
$1544
86.9K
Woluwe-Saint-Lambert
$1593
57.7K
Kortrijk
$1283
77.7K
Sint-Niklaas
$1413
80.2K
Seraing
$1487
64.3K
Forest
$1652
56.6K
Roeselare
$1306
64.5K
Dendermonde
$1469
45.7K
Saint-Gilles
$1524
49.7K
Genk
$1502
66.1K
Braine-l'Alleud
$1645
39.8K
Verviers
$1258
55.2K

In the United States

City Cost of living Population
New York City
$4044
8.8M
Los Angeles
$3165
3.9M
Chicago
$2613
2.75M
Houston
$2221
2.3M
San Diego
$3427
1.39M
Phoenix
$2390
1.61M
Dallas
$2497
1.3M
San Jose
$3502
1.01M
Philadelphia
$2422
1.6M
San Francisco
$3729
874K
San Antonio
$2219
1.43M
Austin
$2590
962K
Seattle
$2974
737K
Washington
$3079
690K
Indianapolis
$2129
888K
Charlotte
$2710
875K
Hempstead
$2627
793K
Fort Worth
$2173
919K
Boston
$3345
676K
Jacksonville
$2246
950K
Denver
$2771
716K
Columbus
$2202
906K
Nashville
$2623
689K
Portland
$2579
653K
Louisville
$1918
633K
Atlanta
$2648
499K
Baltimore
$2197
586K
Detroit
$1979
639K
Las Vegas
$2408
642K
El Paso
$1613
679K