Cost of living comparison
compared to
San Jose vs. Oakland Cost of Living Summary
San Jose is 5.3% more expensive than Oakland.
- Restaurants
-
pay 7.6% less in San Jose
- Groceries
-
pay 2.8% more in San Jose
- Transportation
-
pay 10.5% more in San Jose
- Housing
-
pay 28.4% more in San Jose
- Childcare
-
pay 13.2% less in San Jose
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 29.3% more in San Jose
- Clothing
-
pay 13.3% less in San Jose
The cost of entertainment and sports, housing, transportation, and groceries in San Jose are more expensive than in Oakland. Expenses including clothing, childcare, and restaurants are lower in San Jose.
San Jose vs. Oakland Cost Breakdown
If you lived in San Jose instead of Oakland, you would:
pay 7.6% less for restaurants
|
Oakland
|
San Jose
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$30.00
|
$20.50
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$15.00
|
$12.00
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.93
|
$3.42
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.33
|
$2.44
|
|
Oakland vs. San Jose - Cost of restaurants
pay 2.8% more for groceries
|
Oakland
|
San Jose
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$5.27
|
$5.00
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$10.35
|
$11.39
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$5.46
|
$5.64
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$6.50
|
$5.40
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$6.75
|
$6.98
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$3.53
|
$2.95
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$1.00
|
$1.18
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$2.90
|
$2.62
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$2.80
|
$3.01
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$2.04
|
$1.94
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.55
|
$2.19
|
|
Oakland vs. San Jose - Cost of groceries
pay 10.5% more for transportation
|
Oakland
|
San Jose
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$4.79
|
$4.84
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$85.00
|
$90.00
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$23,894.01
|
$36,753.89
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$22.70
|
$18.41
|
|
Oakland vs. San Jose - Cost of transportation
pay 28.4% more for housing
|
Oakland
|
San Jose
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$63.33
|
$70.13
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$2,035.71
|
$2,916.67
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,883.33
|
$2,700.00
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$190.70
|
$221.60
|
|
Oakland vs. San Jose - Cost of housing
pay 13.2% less for childcare
|
Oakland
|
San Jose
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$2,738.89
|
$1,866.67
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$37,770.00
|
$39,800.00
|
|
Oakland vs. San Jose - Cost of childcare
pay 29.3% more for entertainment and sports
|
Oakland
|
San Jose
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$8.00
|
$9.00
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$5.33
|
$5.83
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$11.00
|
$11.50
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$54.28
|
$113.89
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$14.50
|
$16.00
|
|
Oakland vs. San Jose - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 13.3% less for clothing
|
Oakland
|
San Jose
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$72.33
|
$56.50
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$56.00
|
$46.00
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$103.17
|
$88.89
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$124.75
|
$125.00
|
|
Oakland 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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