Cost of living comparison
San Francisco vs. Helsinki Cost of Living Summary
San Francisco is 72.2% more expensive than Helsinki.
- Restaurants
-
pay 24.7% more in San Francisco
- Groceries
-
pay 68.0% more in San Francisco
- Transportation
-
pay 12.7% less in San Francisco
- Housing
-
pay 2.7 times more in San Francisco
- Childcare
-
pay 4.6 times more in San Francisco
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 21.7% more in San Francisco
- Clothing
-
pay 5.2% less in San Francisco
The cost of childcare, housing, groceries, restaurants, and entertainment and sports in San Francisco are more expensive than in Helsinki. Expenses including transportation and clothing are lower in San Francisco. Notably, childcare and housing are significantly more expensive in San Francisco.
San Francisco vs. Helsinki Cost Breakdown
If you lived in San Francisco instead of Helsinki, you would:
pay 24.7% more for restaurants
|
Helsinki
|
San Francisco
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$17.92
€15.99
|
$27.15
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$13.44
€11.99
|
$15.00
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$3.45
€3.08
|
$3.16
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.59
€2.31
|
$2.70
|
|
pay 68.0% more for groceries
|
Helsinki
|
San Francisco
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$2.76
€2.46
|
$5.31
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$4.96
€4.42
|
$8.16
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$5.08
€4.54
|
$6.63
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$3.93
€3.51
|
$4.93
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$6.02
€5.37
|
$6.99
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.26
€1.12
|
$2.78
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.99
€0.88
|
$1.30
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.12
€1.00
|
$2.00
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$1.77
€1.58
|
$3.11
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.55
€0.49
|
$1.34
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$0.74
€0.66
|
$1.67
|
|
pay 12.7% less for transportation
|
Helsinki
|
San Francisco
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$8.89
€7.93
|
$5.78
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$81.74
€72.96
|
$95.00
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$36,622.07
€32,689.52
|
$36,998.00
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$26.34
€23.51
|
$20.39
|
|
pay 2.7 times more for housing
|
Helsinki
|
San Francisco
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$24.77
€22.11
|
$76.29
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,207.26
€1,077.62
|
$3,735.00
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$904.00
€806.93
|
$2,618.75
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$104.89
€93.62
|
$164.32
|
|
pay 4.6 times more for childcare
|
Helsinki
|
San Francisco
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$476.51
€425.34
|
$2,942.94
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$12,685.20
€11,323.04
|
$42,562.50
|
|
pay 21.7% more for entertainment and sports
|
Helsinki
|
San Francisco
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$10.08
€9.00
|
$8.00
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$5.23
€4.67
|
$5.97
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$14.00
€12.49
|
$12.00
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$46.96
€41.92
|
$121.54
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$18.48
€16.49
|
$18.00
|
|
pay 5.2% less for clothing
|
Helsinki
|
San Francisco
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$92.46
€82.53
|
$76.17
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$43.55
€38.87
|
$47.67
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$104.85
€93.59
|
$101.08
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$149.45
€133.40
|
$138.64
|
|
We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world. Sources: MyLifeElsewhere's cost-of-living dataset (prices updated October 2026). How we calculate this
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