Cost of living comparison
compared to
San Jose vs. Mexico City Cost of Living Summary
San Jose is 33.9% more expensive than Mexico City.
- Restaurants
-
pay 12.8% more in San Jose
- Groceries
-
pay 30.5% more in San Jose
- Transportation
-
pay 2.2 times more in San Jose
- Housing
-
pay 35.0% more in San Jose
- Childcare
-
pay 27.6% more in San Jose
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 9.9% more in San Jose
- Clothing
-
pay 4.6% more in San Jose
The cost of transportation, housing, groceries, childcare, restaurants, and entertainment and sports in San Jose are more expensive than in Mexico City. Notably, transportation is significantly more expensive in San Jose.
San Jose vs. Mexico City Cost Breakdown
If you lived in San Jose instead of Mexico City, you would:
pay 12.8% more for restaurants
|
Mexico City
|
San Jose
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$10.86
MX$195.79
|
$9.95
CRC4,971.04
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$8.82
MX$159.08
|
$9.91
CRC4,947.41
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$1.73
MX$31.23
|
$2.06
CRC1,026.81
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$1.30
MX$23.52
|
$1.67
CRC835.67
|
|
Mexico City vs. San Jose - Cost of restaurants
pay 30.5% more for groceries
|
Mexico City
|
San Jose
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$2.63
MX$47.34
|
$2.64
CRC1,317.25
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$5.04
MX$90.89
|
$4.95
CRC2,473.70
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$6.54
MX$117.92
|
$7.78
CRC3,886.78
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$2.61
MX$47.01
|
$2.88
CRC1,436.38
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$3.80
MX$68.61
|
$3.97
CRC1,980.43
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.37
MX$24.69
|
$1.94
CRC968.17
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.80
MX$14.43
|
$0.65
CRC326.42
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$0.97
MX$17.55
|
$1.95
CRC972.45
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$0.91
MX$16.34
|
$1.58
CRC789.93
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.96
MX$17.29
|
$1.55
CRC772.52
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$0.99
MX$17.93
|
$1.43
CRC714.75
|
|
Mexico City vs. San Jose - Cost of groceries
pay 2.2 times more for transportation
|
Mexico City
|
San Jose
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$5.14
MX$92.65
|
$5.39
CRC2,691.16
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$19.54
MX$352.42
|
$41.21
CRC20,581.22
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$20,030.45
MX$361,229.19
|
$37,640.45
CRC18,800,156.60
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$4.42
MX$79.79
|
$16.12
CRC8,049.44
|
|
Mexico City vs. San Jose - Cost of transportation
pay 35.0% more for housing
|
Mexico City
|
San Jose
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$30.93
MX$557.85
|
$58.88
CRC29,406.17
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,079.15
MX$19,461.34
|
$891.63
CRC445,339.67
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$677.25
MX$12,213.45
|
$560.77
CRC280,086.69
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$37.36
MX$673.78
|
$68.88
CRC34,403.62
|
|
Mexico City vs. San Jose - Cost of housing
pay 27.6% more for childcare
|
Mexico City
|
San Jose
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$430.39
MX$7,761.60
|
$600.27
CRC299,813.02
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$10,897.53
MX$196,526.06
|
$12,608.22
CRC6,297,388.02
|
|
Mexico City vs. San Jose - Cost of childcare
pay 9.9% more for entertainment and sports
|
Mexico City
|
San Jose
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$3.26
MX$58.74
|
$2.67
CRC1,335.80
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$3.81
MX$68.78
|
$3.85
CRC1,924.58
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$4.34
MX$78.32
|
$5.15
CRC2,572.65
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$58.44
MX$1,053.99
|
$55.98
CRC27,961.65
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$6.51
MX$117.47
|
$9.91
CRC4,947.41
|
|
Mexico City vs. San Jose - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 4.6% more for clothing
|
Mexico City
|
San Jose
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$60.95
MX$1,099.08
|
$61.74
CRC30,838.85
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$48.08
MX$867.02
|
$51.32
CRC25,632.51
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$105.72
MX$1,906.56
|
$120.28
CRC60,075.69
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$110.91
MX$2,000.15
|
$106.98
CRC53,432.02
|
|
Mexico City 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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