Cost of living comparison
compared to
San Mateo vs. Berlin Cost of Living Summary
San Mateo is 2.5 times more expensive than Berlin.
- Restaurants
-
pay 2.6% less in San Mateo
- Groceries
-
pay 82.5% more in San Mateo
- Transportation
-
pay 9.7% less in San Mateo
- Housing
-
pay 63.8% more in San Mateo
- Childcare
-
pay 9.9 times more in San Mateo
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 37.2% more in San Mateo
- Clothing
-
pay 34.3% less in San Mateo
The cost of childcare, groceries, housing, and entertainment and sports in San Mateo are more expensive than in Berlin. Expenses including clothing, transportation, and restaurants are lower in San Mateo. Notably, childcare and groceries are significantly more expensive in San Mateo.
San Mateo vs. Berlin Cost Breakdown
If you lived in San Mateo instead of Berlin, you would:
pay 2.6% less for restaurants
|
Berlin
|
San Mateo
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$17.52
€15.11
|
$22.00
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$13.55
€11.68
|
$13.00
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$3.49
€3.01
|
$3.12
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.98
€2.57
|
$2.34
|
|
Berlin vs. San Mateo - Cost of restaurants
pay 82.5% more for groceries
|
Berlin
|
San Mateo
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$2.25
€1.94
|
$5.11
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$7.10
€6.12
|
$7.44
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$5.13
€4.42
|
$6.00
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$3.88
€3.35
|
$8.00
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$5.52
€4.76
|
$9.67
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.54
€1.33
|
$3.00
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.94
€0.81
|
$0.90
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.20
€1.04
|
$1.75
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$1.76
€1.52
|
$3.33
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.91
€0.78
|
$2.70
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$0.78
€0.67
|
$2.00
|
|
Berlin vs. San Mateo - Cost of groceries
pay 9.7% less for transportation
|
Berlin
|
San Mateo
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$7.52
€6.49
|
$4.76
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$68.91
€59.42
|
$65.60
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$32,702.07
€28,199.88
|
$36,753.89
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$32.00
€27.60
|
?? | |
Berlin vs. San Mateo - Cost of transportation
pay 63.8% more for housing
|
Berlin
|
San Mateo
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$50.32
€43.39
|
$63.00
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,427.12
€1,230.65
|
$2,743.33
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,068.35
€921.27
|
$2,855.00
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$277.09
€238.94
|
$194.97
|
|
Berlin vs. San Mateo - Cost of housing
pay 9.9 times more for childcare
|
Berlin
|
San Mateo
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$184.92
€159.46
|
$2,823.00
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$9,579.95
€8,261.05
|
$42,750.00
|
|
Berlin vs. San Mateo - Cost of childcare
pay 37.2% more for entertainment and sports
|
Berlin
|
San Mateo
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$5.26
€4.53
|
$7.00
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$4.45
€3.84
|
$5.20
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$10.16
€8.76
|
$8.50
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$38.79
€33.45
|
$95.00
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$14.89
€12.84
|
$15.99
|
|
Berlin vs. San Mateo - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 34.3% less for clothing
|
Berlin
|
San Mateo
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$93.79
€80.88
|
$60.00
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$43.63
€37.63
|
$25.00
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$106.67
€91.99
|
$101.67
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$129.59
€111.75
|
$60.00
|
|
Berlin vs. San Mateo - 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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