Cost of living comparison

compared to

San Diego vs. Berlin Cost of Living Summary

San Diego is 93.1% more expensive than Berlin.

Restaurants
pay 0.4% more in San Diego
Groceries
pay 34.0% more in San Diego
Transportation
pay 18.5% less in San Diego
Housing
pay 71.9% more in San Diego
Childcare
pay 6.2 times more in San Diego
Entertainment and Sports
pay 41.8% more in San Diego
Clothing
pay 1.2% less in San Diego

The cost of childcare, housing, entertainment and sports, groceries, and restaurants in San Diego are more expensive than in Berlin. Expenses including transportation and clothing are lower in San Diego. Notably, childcare is significantly more expensive in San Diego.

San Diego vs. Berlin Cost Breakdown

If you lived in San Diego instead of Berlin, you would:

pay 0.4% more for restaurants

 
Berlin
San Diego
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant $17.52
€15.11
$21.00
 
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
$13.55
€11.68
$15.00
 
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) $3.49
€3.01
$3.03
 

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pay 34.0% more for groceries

 
Berlin
San Diego
Bread
1 loaf
$2.25
€1.94
$4.57
 
Local cheese (8 oz) $7.10
€6.12
$7.36
 
Milk (1 gallon) $5.13
€4.42
$4.78
 

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pay 18.5% less for transportation

 
Berlin
San Diego
Gasoline (1 gallon) $7.52
€6.49
$4.76
 
Monthly public transit pass $68.91
€59.42
$72.00
 
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) $32,702.07
€28,199.88
$31,965.00
 

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pay 71.9% more for housing

 
Berlin
San Diego
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
$50.32
€43.39
$82.19
 
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area $1,427.12
€1,230.65
$3,033.00
 
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center $1,068.35
€921.27
$2,538.64
 

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pay 6.2 times more for childcare

 
Berlin
San Diego
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly $184.92
€159.46
$1,750.00
 
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters $9,579.95
€8,261.05
$28,750.00
 

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pay 41.8% more for entertainment and sports

 
Berlin
San Diego
Domestic/local beer (1 pint) $5.26
€4.53
$8.00
 
Cappuccino in mid-range area $4.45
€3.84
$5.90
 
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
$10.16
€8.76
$12.00
 

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pay 1.2% less for clothing

 
Berlin
San Diego
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
$93.79
€80.88
$60.72
 
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
$43.63
€37.63
$58.44
 
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
$106.67
€91.99
$105.68
 

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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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