Cost of living comparison
compared to
San Jose vs. New York City Cost of Living Summary
San Jose is 9.0% cheaper than New York City.
- Restaurants
-
pay 5.4% less in San Jose
- Groceries
-
pay 4.9% more in San Jose
- Transportation
-
pay 2.3% less in San Jose
- Housing
-
pay 7.5% more in San Jose
- Childcare
-
pay 35.6% less in San Jose
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 13.8% less in San Jose
- Clothing
-
pay 18.4% less in San Jose
The cost of housing and groceries in San Jose are more expensive than in New York City. Expenses including childcare, clothing, entertainment and sports, restaurants, and transportation are lower in San Jose.
San Jose vs. New York City Cost Breakdown
If you lived in San Jose instead of New York City, you would:
pay 5.4% less for restaurants
|
New York City
|
San Jose
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$25.00
|
$20.50
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$13.00
|
$12.00
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$3.09
|
$3.42
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.61
|
$2.44
|
|
New York City vs. San Jose - Cost of restaurants
pay 4.9% more for groceries
|
New York City
|
San Jose
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$4.75
|
$5.00
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$8.89
|
$11.39
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$6.05
|
$5.64
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$7.20
|
$5.40
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$7.07
|
$6.98
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$3.29
|
$2.95
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$1.08
|
$1.18
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$2.60
|
$2.62
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$2.68
|
$3.01
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.63
|
$1.94
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.78
|
$2.19
|
|
New York City vs. San Jose - Cost of groceries
pay 2.3% less for transportation
|
New York City
|
San Jose
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$3.47
|
$4.84
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$132.00
|
$90.00
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$36,344.69
|
$36,753.89
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$22.39
|
$18.41
|
|
New York City vs. San Jose - Cost of transportation
pay 7.5% more for housing
|
New York City
|
San Jose
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$67.59
|
$70.13
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$4,037.06
|
$2,916.67
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$2,496.67
|
$2,700.00
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$151.98
|
$221.60
|
|
New York City vs. San Jose - Cost of housing
pay 35.6% less for childcare
|
New York City
|
San Jose
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$3,154.10
|
$1,866.67
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$57,250.00
|
$39,800.00
|
|
New York City vs. San Jose - Cost of childcare
pay 13.8% less for entertainment and sports
|
New York City
|
San Jose
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$8.00
|
$9.00
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$5.71
|
$5.83
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$19.00
|
$11.50
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$150.04
|
$113.89
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$20.00
|
$16.00
|
|
New York City vs. San Jose - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 18.4% less for clothing
|
New York City
|
San Jose
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$67.80
|
$56.50
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$49.94
|
$46.00
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$115.58
|
$88.89
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$168.76
|
$125.00
|
|
New York 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
Change currency:
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 San Jose or New York City. It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.