Cost of living comparison
compared to
United States vs. Puerto Rico Cost of Living Summary
United States is 52.2% more expensive than Puerto Rico overall.
- Restaurants
-
pay 37.7% more in United States
- Groceries
-
pay 7.0% more in United States
- Transportation
-
pay 41.2% more in United States
- Housing
-
pay 56.1% more in United States
- Childcare
-
pay 2.7 times more in United States
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 46.1% more in United States
- Clothing
-
pay 5.2% more in United States
The cost of childcare, housing, entertainment and sports, transportation, restaurants, and groceries in United States are more expensive than in Puerto Rico. Notably, childcare is significantly more expensive in United States.
United States vs. Puerto Rico Cost Breakdown
If you lived in United States instead of Puerto Rico, you would:
pay 37.7% more for restaurants
|
Puerto Rico
|
United States
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$15.10
|
$19.45
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$10.01
|
$11.12
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$1.58
|
$2.56
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$1.35
|
$2.00
|
|
Puerto Rico vs. United States - Cost of restaurants
pay 7.0% more for groceries
|
Puerto Rico
|
United States
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$3.18
|
$3.56
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$4.16
|
$6.50
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$8.11
|
$3.97
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$5.34
|
$4.27
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$3.76
|
$5.41
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$2.50
|
$2.37
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$1.06
|
$0.78
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.54
|
$2.04
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$1.84
|
$2.21
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.65
|
$1.34
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.04
|
$1.38
|
|
Puerto Rico vs. United States - Cost of groceries
pay 41.2% more for transportation
|
Puerto Rico
|
United States
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$3.65
|
$3.41
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$35.20
|
$65.85
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$34,700.00
|
$32,336.38
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$9.22
|
$17.61
|
|
Puerto Rico vs. United States - Cost of transportation
pay 56.1% more for housing
|
Puerto Rico
|
United States
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$62.46
|
$68.97
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$800.93
|
$1,664.59
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$580.00
|
$1,416.15
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$242.07
|
$150.19
|
|
Puerto Rico vs. United States - Cost of housing
pay 2.7 times more for childcare
|
Puerto Rico
|
United States
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$453.00
|
$1,387.27
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$9,760.00
|
$23,196.46
|
|
Puerto Rico vs. United States - Cost of childcare
pay 46.1% more for entertainment and sports
|
Puerto Rico
|
United States
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$2.73
|
$5.84
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$3.38
|
$5.15
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$11.21
|
$9.90
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$37.37
|
$51.45
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$9.90
|
$13.64
|
|
Puerto Rico vs. United States - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 5.2% more for clothing
|
Puerto Rico
|
United States
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$42.97
|
$51.08
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$54.22
|
$41.81
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$81.06
|
$87.56
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$96.00
|
$112.04
|
|
Puerto Rico vs. United States - 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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