Cost of living comparison
compared to
Santa Cruz vs. Hong Kong Cost of Living Summary
Santa Cruz is 56.2% more expensive than Hong Kong.
- Restaurants
-
pay 2.5 times more in Santa Cruz
- Groceries
-
pay 56.5% more in Santa Cruz
- Transportation
-
pay 11.3% less in Santa Cruz
- Housing
-
pay 91.1% more in Santa Cruz
- Childcare
-
pay 2.2 times more in Santa Cruz
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 3.5% less in Santa Cruz
- Clothing
-
pay 6.4% less in Santa Cruz
The cost of restaurants, childcare, housing, and groceries in Santa Cruz are more expensive than in Hong Kong. Expenses including transportation, clothing, and entertainment and sports are lower in Santa Cruz. Notably, restaurants, childcare, and housing are significantly more expensive in Santa Cruz.
Santa Cruz vs. Hong Kong Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Santa Cruz instead of Hong Kong, you would:
pay 2.5 times more for restaurants
|
Hong Kong
|
Santa Cruz
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$7.91
HK$61.77
|
$25.00
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$6.43
HK$50.22
|
$15.00
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$1.39
HK$10.85
|
$2.93
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$1.11
HK$8.69
|
$2.67
|
|
Hong Kong vs. Santa Cruz - Cost of restaurants
pay 56.5% more for groceries
|
Hong Kong
|
Santa Cruz
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$2.19
HK$17.12
|
$5.27
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$12.44
HK$97.22
|
$10.35
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$11.75
HK$91.80
|
$5.25
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$3.52
HK$27.47
|
$6.50
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$4.85
HK$37.90
|
$6.75
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.57
HK$12.24
|
$3.53
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$1.09
HK$8.49
|
$1.00
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.62
HK$12.67
|
$2.90
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$1.39
HK$10.83
|
$2.80
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.10
HK$8.59
|
$2.04
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.06
HK$8.28
|
$1.55
|
|
Hong Kong vs. Santa Cruz - Cost of groceries
pay 11.3% less for transportation
|
Hong Kong
|
Santa Cruz
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$11.90
HK$92.97
|
$4.79
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$67.49
HK$527.34
|
$65.00
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$38,564.70
HK$301K
|
$23,894.01
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$14.53
HK$113.50
|
$22.70
|
|
Hong Kong vs. Santa Cruz - Cost of transportation
pay 91.1% more for housing
|
Hong Kong
|
Santa Cruz
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$22.19
HK$173.39
|
$76.17
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$2,349.29
HK$18,356.98
|
$2,989.17
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,688.04
HK$13,190.07
|
$2,639.80
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$177.52
HK$1,387.15
|
$244.30
|
|
Hong Kong vs. Santa Cruz - Cost of housing
pay 2.2 times more for childcare
|
Hong Kong
|
Santa Cruz
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$1,038.61
HK$8,115.54
|
$2,738.89
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$22,248.89
HK$174K
|
$37,770.00
|
|
Hong Kong vs. Santa Cruz - Cost of childcare
pay 3.5% less for entertainment and sports
|
Hong Kong
|
Santa Cruz
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$6.48
HK$50.66
|
$7.00
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$5.23
HK$40.87
|
$5.33
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$13.11
HK$102.46
|
$11.00
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$79.18
HK$618.66
|
$60.00
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$12.85
HK$100.45
|
$14.50
|
|
Hong Kong vs. Santa Cruz - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 6.4% less for clothing
|
Hong Kong
|
Santa Cruz
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$74.06
HK$578.71
|
$55.00
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$42.18
HK$329.56
|
$56.00
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$91.97
HK$718.68
|
$80.00
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$142.80
HK$1,115.78
|
$115.00
|
|
Hong Kong 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
Change currency:
Compare countries by overall cost of living
See the
cost of living in Hong Kong vs. United States.
This provides a comparison of the average cost of living from cities within Hong Kong and United States.
Help us improve these prices
MyLifeElsewhere is a collaborative project. Please enter price information for your location to help assist us in making these comparisons more accurate.
Learn more
ASK THE ELSEWHERE COMMUNITY
Join the Elsewhere community and ask a question about Santa Cruz or Hong Kong. It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.