Cost of living comparison
compared to
San Jose vs. Asmara Cost of Living Summary
San Jose is 4.1 times more expensive than Asmara.
- Restaurants
-
pay 45.0% more in San Jose
- Groceries
-
pay 80.4% more in San Jose
- Transportation
-
pay 2.1 times more in San Jose
- Housing
-
pay 71.2% more in San Jose
- Childcare
-
pay 15.8 times more in San Jose
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 4.8 times more in San Jose
- Clothing
-
pay 21.0% less in San Jose
The cost of childcare, entertainment and sports, transportation, groceries, housing, and restaurants in San Jose are more expensive than in Asmara. Notably, childcare, entertainment and sports, and transportation are significantly more expensive in San Jose.
San Jose vs. Asmara Cost Breakdown
If you lived in San Jose instead of Asmara, you would:
pay 45.0% more for restaurants
|
Asmara
|
San Jose
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$12.00
ERN180.00
|
$9.95
CRC4,947.81
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$5.99
ERN89.85
|
$9.91
CRC4,924.29
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$1.25
ERN18.75
|
$2.06
CRC1,022.01
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$1.00
ERN15.00
|
$1.67
CRC831.76
|
|
Asmara vs. San Jose - Cost of restaurants
pay 80.4% more for groceries
|
Asmara
|
San Jose
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
?? |
$2.64
CRC1,311.09
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$1.50
ERN22.50
|
$4.95
CRC2,462.15
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$5.30
ERN79.49
|
$7.78
CRC3,868.62
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$4.38
ERN65.70
|
$2.88
CRC1,429.67
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$12.17
ERN182.57
|
$3.97
CRC1,971.17
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$5.54
ERN83.16
|
$1.94
CRC963.65
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.58
ERN8.69
|
$0.65
CRC324.89
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$0.91
ERN13.61
|
$1.95
CRC967.90
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$0.50
ERN7.56
|
$1.58
CRC786.24
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.70
ERN10.43
|
$1.55
CRC768.91
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$0.43
ERN6.50
|
$1.43
CRC711.41
|
|
Asmara vs. San Jose - Cost of groceries
pay 2.1 times more for transportation
|
Asmara
|
San Jose
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$8.52
ERN127.76
|
$5.39
CRC2,678.58
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$8.00
ERN120.00
|
$41.21
CRC20,485.06
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$66,666.00
ERN999,990.00
|
$37,640.45
CRC18,712,315.88
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) | ?? |
$16.12
CRC8,011.83
|
|
Asmara vs. San Jose - Cost of transportation
pay 71.2% more for housing
|
Asmara
|
San Jose
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$200.00
ERN3,000.00
|
$58.88
CRC29,268.77
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$475.00
ERN7,125.00
|
$891.63
CRC443,258.89
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$400.00
ERN6,000.00
|
$560.77
CRC278,778.03
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$21.03
ERN315.44
|
$68.88
CRC34,242.87
|
|
Asmara vs. San Jose - Cost of housing
pay 15.8 times more for childcare
|
Asmara
|
San Jose
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$25.00
ERN375.00
|
$600.27
CRC298,412.20
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$1,675.00
ERN25,125.00
|
$12,608.22
CRC6,267,964.49
|
|
Asmara vs. San Jose - Cost of childcare
pay 4.8 times more for entertainment and sports
|
Asmara
|
San Jose
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$0.80
ERN12.00
|
$2.67
CRC1,329.56
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$0.82
ERN12.38
|
$3.85
CRC1,915.58
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
?? |
$5.15
CRC2,560.63
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$27.00
ERN405.00
|
$55.98
CRC27,831.01
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$1.10
ERN16.50
|
$9.91
CRC4,924.29
|
|
Asmara vs. San Jose - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 21.0% less for clothing
|
Asmara
|
San Jose
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$82.50
ERN1,237.50
|
$61.74
CRC30,694.76
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$75.00
ERN1,125.00
|
$51.32
CRC25,512.74
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$200.00
ERN3,000.00
|
$120.28
CRC59,794.99
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$95.00
ERN1,425.00
|
$106.98
CRC53,182.37
|
|
Asmara vs. San Jose - Cost of clothing
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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