Cost of living comparison
compared to
San Jose vs. Kuala Lumpur Cost of Living Summary
San Jose is 78.5% more expensive than Kuala Lumpur.
- Restaurants
-
pay 2.5 times more in San Jose
- Groceries
-
pay 71.1% more in San Jose
- Transportation
-
pay 2.2 times more in San Jose
- Housing
-
pay 73.6% more in San Jose
- Childcare
-
pay 83.5% more in San Jose
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 25.8% more in San Jose
- Clothing
-
pay 26.3% more in San Jose
The cost of restaurants, transportation, childcare, housing, groceries, and clothing in San Jose are more expensive than in Kuala Lumpur. Notably, restaurants, transportation, and childcare are significantly more expensive in San Jose.
San Jose vs. Kuala Lumpur Cost Breakdown
If you lived in San Jose instead of Kuala Lumpur, you would:
pay 2.5 times more for restaurants
|
Kuala Lumpur
|
San Jose
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$4.74
MYR19.59
|
$9.95
CRC4,947.81
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$4.74
MYR19.59
|
$9.91
CRC4,924.29
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$0.89
MYR3.66
|
$2.06
CRC1,022.01
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$0.49
MYR2.01
|
$1.67
CRC831.76
|
|
Kuala Lumpur vs. San Jose - Cost of restaurants
pay 71.1% more for groceries
|
Kuala Lumpur
|
San Jose
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$0.98
MYR4.03
|
$2.64
CRC1,311.09
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$7.13
MYR29.45
|
$4.95
CRC2,462.15
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$7.98
MYR32.96
|
$7.78
CRC3,868.62
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$2.23
MYR9.21
|
$2.88
CRC1,429.67
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$2.09
MYR8.65
|
$3.97
CRC1,971.17
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.32
MYR5.45
|
$1.94
CRC963.65
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.75
MYR3.09
|
$0.65
CRC324.89
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.22
MYR5.04
|
$1.95
CRC967.90
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$0.69
MYR2.86
|
$1.58
CRC786.24
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.57
MYR2.34
|
$1.55
CRC768.91
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$0.62
MYR2.56
|
$1.43
CRC711.41
|
|
Kuala Lumpur vs. San Jose - Cost of groceries
pay 2.2 times more for transportation
|
Kuala Lumpur
|
San Jose
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$1.87
MYR7.71
|
$5.39
CRC2,678.58
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$11.85
MYR48.96
|
$41.21
CRC20,485.06
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$40,284.36
MYR166,475.12
|
$37,640.45
CRC18,712,315.88
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$10.66
MYR44.07
|
$16.12
CRC8,011.83
|
|
Kuala Lumpur vs. San Jose - Cost of transportation
pay 73.6% more for housing
|
Kuala Lumpur
|
San Jose
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$25.49
MYR105.32
|
$58.88
CRC29,268.77
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$573.16
MYR2,368.60
|
$891.63
CRC443,258.89
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$350.71
MYR1,449.31
|
$560.77
CRC278,778.03
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$46.59
MYR192.54
|
$68.88
CRC34,242.87
|
|
Kuala Lumpur vs. San Jose - Cost of housing
pay 83.5% more for childcare
|
Kuala Lumpur
|
San Jose
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$264.45
MYR1,092.86
|
$600.27
CRC298,412.20
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$9,004.74
MYR37,212.09
|
$12,608.22
CRC6,267,964.49
|
|
Kuala Lumpur vs. San Jose - Cost of childcare
pay 25.8% more for entertainment and sports
|
Kuala Lumpur
|
San Jose
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$4.27
MYR17.63
|
$2.67
CRC1,329.56
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$3.06
MYR12.65
|
$3.85
CRC1,915.58
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$4.27
MYR17.63
|
$5.15
CRC2,560.63
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$46.43
MYR191.86
|
$55.98
CRC27,831.01
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$4.98
MYR20.56
|
$9.91
CRC4,924.29
|
|
Kuala Lumpur vs. San Jose - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 26.3% more for clothing
|
Kuala Lumpur
|
San Jose
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$61.66
MYR254.80
|
$61.74
CRC30,694.76
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$37.10
MYR153.34
|
$51.32
CRC25,512.74
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$87.80
MYR362.83
|
$120.28
CRC59,794.99
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$82.47
MYR340.83
|
$106.98
CRC53,182.37
|
|
Kuala Lumpur vs. San Jose - 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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