Cost of living comparison
Washington vs. Puerto Rico Cost of Living Summary
Washington is 36.4% more expensive than Puerto Rico overall.
- Restaurants
-
pay 39.2% more in Washington
- Groceries
-
pay 5.1% less in Washington
- Transportation
-
pay 23.3% more in Washington
- Housing
-
pay 59.1% more in Washington
- Childcare
-
pay 2.7 times more in Washington
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 80.2% more in Washington
- Clothing
-
pay 2.9% less in Washington
The cost of childcare, entertainment and sports, housing, restaurants, and transportation in Washington are more expensive than in Puerto Rico. Expenses including groceries and clothing are lower in Washington. Notably, childcare and entertainment and sports are significantly more expensive in Washington.
Washington vs. Puerto Rico Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Washington instead of Puerto Rico, you would:
pay 39.2% more for restaurants
|
Puerto Rico
|
Washington
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$16.34
|
$22.26
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$9.24
|
$12.24
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$1.74
|
$2.75
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$1.35
|
$2.18
|
|
pay 5.1% less for groceries
|
Puerto Rico
|
Washington
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$3.37
|
$4.04
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$5.35
|
$7.06
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$7.71
|
$4.15
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$6.03
|
$4.91
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$3.95
|
$6.11
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$2.15
|
$2.34
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$1.17
|
$0.83
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.88
|
$1.87
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$2.09
|
$2.03
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.43
|
$1.24
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.54
|
$1.24
|
|
pay 23.3% more for transportation
|
Puerto Rico
|
Washington
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$4.08
|
$4.99
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$37.75
|
$70.32
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$38,571.43
|
$34,567.40
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$14.50
|
$17.13
|
|
pay 59.1% more for housing
|
Puerto Rico
|
Washington
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$66.43
|
$77.56
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,098.02
|
$1,772.00
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$722.33
|
$1,547.68
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$228.66
|
$175.22
|
|
pay 2.7 times more for childcare
|
Puerto Rico
|
Washington
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$700.71
|
$1,891.11
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$10,819.51
|
$28,281.22
|
|
pay 80.2% more for entertainment and sports
|
Puerto Rico
|
Washington
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$2.61
|
$6.38
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$2.78
|
$5.43
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$11.22
|
$11.44
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$29.37
|
$55.23
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$9.50
|
$15.12
|
|
pay 2.9% less for clothing
|
Puerto Rico
|
Washington
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$52.28
|
$54.08
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$47.82
|
$40.93
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$96.61
|
$89.87
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$101.25
|
$109.43
|
|
We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world. Sources: MyLifeElsewhere's cost-of-living dataset (prices updated November 2026). How we calculate this
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