Cost of living comparison
compared to
Santa Cruz vs. Berlin Cost of Living Summary
Santa Cruz is 2.4 times more expensive than Berlin.
- Restaurants
-
pay 6.7% more in Santa Cruz
- Groceries
-
pay 75.5% more in Santa Cruz
- Transportation
-
pay 24.5% less in Santa Cruz
- Housing
-
pay 74.0% more in Santa Cruz
- Childcare
-
pay 9.4 times more in Santa Cruz
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 22.7% more in Santa Cruz
- Clothing
-
pay 12.3% less in Santa Cruz
The cost of childcare, groceries, housing, entertainment and sports, and restaurants in Santa Cruz are more expensive than in Berlin. Expenses including transportation and clothing are lower in Santa Cruz. Notably, childcare and groceries are significantly more expensive in Santa Cruz.
Santa Cruz vs. Berlin Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Santa Cruz instead of Berlin, you would:
pay 6.7% more for restaurants
|
Berlin
|
Santa Cruz
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$17.52
€14.82
|
$25.00
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$13.55
€11.46
|
$15.00
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$3.49
€2.95
|
$2.93
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.98
€2.52
|
$2.67
|
|
Berlin vs. Santa Cruz - Cost of restaurants
pay 75.5% more for groceries
|
Berlin
|
Santa Cruz
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$2.25
€1.91
|
$5.27
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$7.10
€6.01
|
$10.35
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$5.13
€4.34
|
$5.25
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$3.88
€3.29
|
$6.50
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$5.52
€4.67
|
$6.75
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.54
€1.31
|
$3.53
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.94
€0.79
|
$1.00
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.20
€1.02
|
$2.90
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$1.76
€1.49
|
$2.80
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.91
€0.77
|
$2.04
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$0.78
€0.66
|
$1.55
|
|
Berlin vs. Santa Cruz - Cost of groceries
pay 24.5% less for transportation
|
Berlin
|
Santa Cruz
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$7.52
€6.36
|
$4.79
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$68.91
€58.31
|
$65.00
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$32,702.07
€27,672.49
|
$23,894.01
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$32.00
€27.08
|
$22.70
|
|
Berlin vs. Santa Cruz - Cost of transportation
pay 74.0% more for housing
|
Berlin
|
Santa Cruz
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$50.32
€42.58
|
$76.17
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,427.12
€1,207.63
|
$2,989.17
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,068.35
€904.04
|
$2,639.80
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$277.09
€234.47
|
$244.30
|
|
Berlin vs. Santa Cruz - Cost of housing
pay 9.4 times more for childcare
|
Berlin
|
Santa Cruz
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$184.92
€156.48
|
$2,738.89
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$9,579.95
€8,106.56
|
$37,770.00
|
|
Berlin vs. Santa Cruz - Cost of childcare
pay 22.7% more for entertainment and sports
|
Berlin
|
Santa Cruz
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$5.26
€4.45
|
$7.00
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$4.45
€3.77
|
$5.33
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$10.16
€8.60
|
$11.00
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$38.79
€32.82
|
$60.00
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$14.89
€12.60
|
$14.50
|
|
Berlin vs. Santa Cruz - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 12.3% less for clothing
|
Berlin
|
Santa Cruz
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$93.79
€79.37
|
$55.00
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$43.63
€36.92
|
$56.00
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$106.67
€90.27
|
$80.00
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$129.59
€109.66
|
$115.00
|
|
Berlin vs. Santa Cruz - 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: February 2026
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