Cost of living comparison
compared to
San Mateo vs. Princeton Cost of Living Summary
San Mateo is 10.8% more expensive than Princeton.
- Restaurants
-
pay 14.6% more in San Mateo
- Groceries
-
pay 21.4% more in San Mateo
- Transportation
-
pay 1.8% less in San Mateo
- Housing
-
pay 33.1% more in San Mateo
- Childcare
-
pay 29.4% more in San Mateo
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 18.4% less in San Mateo
- Clothing
-
pay 3.0% less in San Mateo
The cost of housing, childcare, groceries, and restaurants in San Mateo are more expensive than in Princeton. Expenses including entertainment and sports, clothing, and transportation are lower in San Mateo.
San Mateo vs. Princeton Cost Breakdown
If you lived in San Mateo instead of Princeton, you would:
pay 14.6% more for restaurants
|
Princeton
|
San Mateo
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$17.00
|
$22.00
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$12.50
|
$13.00
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.50
|
$3.12
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.33
|
$2.34
|
|
Princeton vs. San Mateo - Cost of restaurants
pay 21.4% more for groceries
|
Princeton
|
San Mateo
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$4.04
|
$5.11
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$12.86
|
$7.44
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$4.15
|
$6.00
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$4.23
|
$8.00
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$11.00
|
$9.67
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$3.00
|
$3.00
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$1.15
|
$0.90
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$2.42
|
$1.75
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$2.75
|
$3.33
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.24
|
$2.70
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.67
|
$2.00
|
|
Princeton vs. San Mateo - Cost of groceries
pay 1.8% less for transportation
|
Princeton
|
San Mateo
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$3.17
|
$4.76
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$199.00
|
$65.60
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$32,955.62
|
$36,753.89
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$25.46
|
?? | |
Princeton vs. San Mateo - Cost of transportation
pay 33.1% more for housing
|
Princeton
|
San Mateo
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$51.00
|
$63.00
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$2,700.00
|
$2,743.33
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,925.00
|
$2,855.00
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$122.52
|
$194.97
|
|
Princeton vs. San Mateo - Cost of housing
pay 29.4% more for childcare
|
Princeton
|
San Mateo
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$1,858.33
|
$2,823.00
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$40,000.00
|
$42,750.00
|
|
Princeton vs. San Mateo - Cost of childcare
pay 18.4% less for entertainment and sports
|
Princeton
|
San Mateo
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$8.00
|
$7.00
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$5.20
|
$5.20
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$11.00
|
$8.50
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$172.50
|
$95.00
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$15.00
|
$15.99
|
|
Princeton vs. San Mateo - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 3.0% less for clothing
|
Princeton
|
San Mateo
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$32.80
|
$60.00
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$24.00
|
$25.00
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$142.50
|
$101.67
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$202.50
|
$60.00
|
|
Princeton vs. San Mateo - 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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