Cost of living comparison
compared to
Puerto Rico vs. New Jersey Cost of Living Summary
Puerto Rico is 28.5% cheaper than New Jersey.
- Restaurants
-
pay 29.2% less in Puerto Rico
- Groceries
-
pay 10.9% less in Puerto Rico
- Transportation
-
pay 26.2% less in Puerto Rico
- Housing
-
pay 10.9% less in Puerto Rico
- Childcare
-
pay 70.9% less in Puerto Rico
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 35.6% less in Puerto Rico
- Clothing
-
pay 15.9% less in Puerto Rico
Expenses including childcare, entertainment and sports, restaurants, transportation, clothing, and groceries are lower in Puerto Rico.
Puerto Rico vs. New Jersey Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Puerto Rico instead of New Jersey, you would:
pay 29.2% less for restaurants
|
New Jersey
|
Puerto Rico
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$19.95
|
$15.10
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$12.40
|
$10.01
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.60
|
$1.58
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.04
|
$1.35
|
|
New Jersey vs. Puerto Rico - Cost of restaurants
pay 10.9% less for groceries
|
New Jersey
|
Puerto Rico
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$4.17
|
$3.18
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$8.09
|
$4.16
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$4.78
|
$8.11
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$5.24
|
$5.34
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$5.96
|
$3.76
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$2.76
|
$2.50
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.98
|
$1.06
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$2.20
|
$1.54
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$2.62
|
$1.84
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.44
|
$1.65
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.60
|
$1.04
|
|
New Jersey vs. Puerto Rico - Cost of groceries
pay 26.2% less for transportation
|
New Jersey
|
Puerto Rico
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$3.24
|
$3.65
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$116.02
|
$35.20
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$32,841.50
|
$34,700.00
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$19.75
|
$9.22
|
|
New Jersey vs. Puerto Rico - Cost of transportation
pay 10.9% less for housing
|
New Jersey
|
Puerto Rico
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$62.68
|
$62.46
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$2,279.92
|
$800.93
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,885.98
|
$580.00
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$126.74
|
$242.07
|
|
New Jersey vs. Puerto Rico - Cost of housing
pay 70.9% less for childcare
|
New Jersey
|
Puerto Rico
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$2,023.96
|
$453.00
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$27,267.62
|
$9,760.00
|
|
New Jersey vs. Puerto Rico - Cost of childcare
pay 35.6% less for entertainment and sports
|
New Jersey
|
Puerto Rico
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$6.95
|
$2.73
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$5.20
|
$3.38
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$12.79
|
$11.21
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$52.90
|
$37.37
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$16.52
|
$9.90
|
|
New Jersey vs. Puerto Rico - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 15.9% less for clothing
|
New Jersey
|
Puerto Rico
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$57.64
|
$42.97
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$49.26
|
$54.22
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$99.28
|
$81.06
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$136.81
|
$96.00
|
|
New Jersey vs. Puerto Rico - 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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