Cost Of Living in Clear Lake, IA

The cost of living index is based on a national average of 100. For example, if the cost of living is 90, then it is 10% lower than average. If the cost of living is 110, then it is 10% higher than average. The breakdown for each index is as follows: goods & services (33%), groceries (13%), health care (5%), housing (30%), transportation (9%) and utilities (10%). If the cost of living data was unavailable for this city, estimates based upon nearby cities were used.
Index	Clear Lake	Iowa	National
Cost of living	96	90	100
Goods & Services	100	96	100
Groceries	95	97	100
Health care	100	99	100
Housing	88	73	100
Transportation	96	98	100
Utilities	104	96	100

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Cost Of Living Quick Facts

The cost of living in Clear Lake is 7% higher than the Iowa average
The cost of living in Clear Lake is 4% lower than the national average
Clear Lake housing is 12% lower than the national average
Iowa general sales tax is 18% higher than the national average
Iowa state income tax is 69% higher than the national average

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Price difference in compared to

Cost of living index
Goods & Services index
Groceries index
Health care index
Housing index
Transportation index
Utilities index

Median Income & Debt-To-Income Ratio

Median Income	Per Year	Per Month	Max Budget (28% DTI)	Max Budget (36% DTI)
Owners	$81,076	$6,756	$1,892	$2,433
Renters	$33,516	$2,793	$782	$1,006

The percentage of monthly income spent on housing related expenses can help predict the affordability of housing in Clear Lake, IA, as well as what the overall cost of living might be. Generally, a good rule to follow is that the debt-to-income (DTI) level you want to maintain is 28 percent or less of your income on your rent or mortgage payments and not more than 36 percent of income on all expenses and debts. In Clear Lake, homeowners have a median income of $81,076. Using that number, a maximum of $1,892 per month should be allocated to housing expenses. For those who are renting instead of owning, the median income is $33,516, which means there is a maximum of $782 to be spent on the costs of renting a home or apartment.

Iowa Sales Tax

State	General Sales Tax	With Max Surtax
Iowa	6%	7%

Iowa Income Tax

State	Income Tax (Low)	Income Tax (High)
Iowa	4.4%	6%

Goods & Services

Item	Clear Lake	National avg.	Difference
Haircut	$32.91	$24.26	35.6%
Beauty Salon	$35.27	$45.56	22.6%
Toothpaste	$3.74	$3.70	1.1%
Shampoo	$1.24	$1.28	3.0%
Movie	$10.32	$12.13	15.0%
Bowling	$10.28	$18.00	42.9%

Groceries

Item	Clear Lake	National avg.	Difference
Ground Beef	$5.27	$5.84	9.7%
Fried Chicken	$1.42	$1.57	9.8%
Milk	$4.56	$4.67	2.4%
Potatoes	$5.01	$4.93	1.6%
Pizza	$11.94	$12.09	1.3%
Beer	$9.82	$10.41	5.7%

Health Care

Item	Clear Lake	National avg.	Difference
Optometrist	$87.93	$125.68	30.0%
Doctor	$153.18	$135.78	12.8%
Dentist	$105.03	$113.29	7.3%
Ibuprofen	$10.25	$10.65	3.8%
Lipitor	$501.86	$468.60	7.1%

Housing

Item	Clear Lake	National avg.	Difference
Home Price	$178,000.00	$184,700.00	3.6%
Avg. Mortgage Payment	$2,232.06	$2,346.69	4.9%
Apartment Rent	$636.00	$949.00	33.0%

Transportation

Item	Clear Lake	National avg.	Difference
Gasoline	$3.39	$3.46	2.1%
Tire Balancing	$54.83	$59.92	8.5%

Utilities

Item	Clear Lake	National avg.	Difference
All Electricity	$209.45	$193.99	8.0%
Phone	$187.72	$192.25	2.4%

Although the cost of living data is updated regularly, this cost of living information is to be used as estimates only as prices can change on an ongoing basis.

Nearby cities with low cost of living

City	Population	Cost of Living Index	National Avg.
Burchinal, IA	20	99	1.0%
Miller, IA	30	99	1.0%
Portland, IA	27	99	1.0%
Goodell, IA	112	76	23.6%
Swaledale, IA	132	81	19.3%
Clear Lake, IA	7,594	96	4.4%

Cities with similar population

City	Population	Cost of Living Index	National Avg.
Sioux Center, IA	7,592	96	3.7%
Interlaken, CA	7,596	162	61.8%
West Frankfort, IL	7,597	83	17.0%
Lamar, CO	7,598	88	11.9%
Corning, CA	7,589	105	5.3%
Clear Lake, IA	7,594	96	4.4%

Date & Last Updated: This data reflects 2023 and was released from C2ER in January, 2024; this is the most current data available.

Cost of Living in Clear Lake, IA