Cost of living comparison
compared to
San Jose vs. Phoenix Cost of Living Summary
San Jose is 37.7% more expensive than Phoenix.
- Restaurants
-
pay 7.7% more in San Jose
- Groceries
-
pay 41.6% more in San Jose
- Transportation
-
pay 29.2% more in San Jose
- Housing
-
pay 41.0% more in San Jose
- Childcare
-
pay 91.8% more in San Jose
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 47.8% more in San Jose
- Clothing
-
pay 5.0% more in San Jose
The cost of childcare, entertainment and sports, groceries, housing, transportation, and restaurants in San Jose are more expensive than in Phoenix. Notably, childcare is significantly more expensive in San Jose.
San Jose vs. Phoenix Cost Breakdown
If you lived in San Jose instead of Phoenix, you would:
pay 7.7% more for restaurants
|
Phoenix
|
San Jose
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$20.00
|
$20.50
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$12.25
|
$12.00
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.80
|
$3.42
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.25
|
$2.44
|
|
Phoenix vs. San Jose - Cost of restaurants
pay 41.6% more for groceries
|
Phoenix
|
San Jose
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$4.20
|
$5.00
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$6.38
|
$11.39
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$3.40
|
$5.64
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$5.10
|
$5.40
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$5.93
|
$6.98
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$2.06
|
$2.95
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.75
|
$1.18
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.74
|
$2.62
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$2.63
|
$3.01
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.42
|
$1.94
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.30
|
$2.19
|
|
Phoenix vs. San Jose - Cost of groceries
pay 29.2% more for transportation
|
Phoenix
|
San Jose
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$3.52
|
$4.84
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$62.00
|
$90.00
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$36,113.30
|
$36,753.89
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$13.94
|
$18.41
|
|
Phoenix vs. San Jose - Cost of transportation
pay 41.0% more for housing
|
Phoenix
|
San Jose
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$81.88
|
$70.13
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,682.00
|
$2,916.67
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,405.24
|
$2,700.00
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$196.17
|
$221.60
|
|
Phoenix vs. San Jose - Cost of housing
pay 91.8% more for childcare
|
Phoenix
|
San Jose
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$1,271.43
|
$1,866.67
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$16,800.00
|
$39,800.00
|
|
Phoenix vs. San Jose - Cost of childcare
pay 47.8% more for entertainment and sports
|
Phoenix
|
San Jose
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$6.00
|
$9.00
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$6.04
|
$5.83
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$11.62
|
$11.50
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$41.36
|
$113.89
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$13.50
|
$16.00
|
|
Phoenix vs. San Jose - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 5.0% more for clothing
|
Phoenix
|
San Jose
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$53.12
|
$56.50
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$43.50
|
$46.00
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$91.72
|
$88.89
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$112.79
|
$125.00
|
|
Phoenix 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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