| If you are used to small town prices (I was), then Chicago can seem a little expensive. There is a rather high sales tax (~9%+) and a restaurant tax, too. It's not unbearably more expensive, and it depends on the domain. Movies downtown are $10.50, which, compared to my hometown, is quite expensive. It's not something I notice a lot, since between doing campus stuff and using public transportation, I'm not spending on a lot of the things I spend at home (gas, pretty much all recreation, etc.). If you are used to paying for gas to drive around pretty much everywhere you go, it's a big relief on the budget not to be driving that much in Chicago (since everyone lives in the same neighborhood, and there are buses everywhere, driving [or having a car] is not at all necessary.) Most students only need to pay for transportation when they leave Hyde Park (typically only on weekends). | 
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