Cost of living comparison
compared to
New York vs. San Diego Cost of Living Summary
New York is 10.8% cheaper than San Diego.
- Restaurants
-
pay 17.3% less in New York
- Groceries
-
pay 3.1% more in New York
- Transportation
-
pay 2.8% more in New York
- Housing
-
pay 32.2% less in New York
- Childcare
-
pay 5.5% less in New York
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 8.8% less in New York
- Clothing
-
pay 17.8% less in New York
The cost of groceries and transportation in New York are more expensive than in San Diego. Expenses including housing, clothing, restaurants, entertainment and sports, and childcare are lower in New York.
New York vs. San Diego Cost Breakdown
If you lived in New York instead of San Diego, you would:
pay 17.3% less for restaurants
|
San Diego
|
New York
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$21.00
|
$20.39
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$15.00
|
$11.80
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$3.03
|
$2.45
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.50
|
$1.86
|
|
San Diego vs. New York - Cost of restaurants
pay 3.1% more for groceries
|
San Diego
|
New York
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$4.57
|
$3.78
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$7.36
|
$7.84
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$4.78
|
$4.25
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$5.84
|
$4.76
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$6.07
|
$5.49
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$2.22
|
$2.39
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.78
|
$0.88
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.91
|
$2.16
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$2.26
|
$2.38
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.42
|
$1.43
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.12
|
$1.63
|
|
San Diego vs. New York - Cost of groceries
pay 2.8% more for transportation
|
San Diego
|
New York
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$4.76
|
$3.32
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$72.00
|
$95.86
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$31,965.00
|
$33,821.80
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$19.40
|
$19.88
|
|
San Diego vs. New York - Cost of transportation
pay 32.2% less for housing
|
San Diego
|
New York
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$82.19
|
$65.63
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$3,033.00
|
$1,876.02
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$2,538.64
|
$1,567.68
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$205.84
|
$139.14
|
|
San Diego vs. New York - Cost of housing
pay 5.5% less for childcare
|
San Diego
|
New York
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$1,750.00
|
$1,788.00
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$28,750.00
|
$24,966.76
|
|
San Diego vs. New York - Cost of childcare
pay 8.8% less for entertainment and sports
|
San Diego
|
New York
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$8.00
|
$6.28
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$5.90
|
$5.14
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$12.00
|
$14.22
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$73.21
|
$63.27
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$17.50
|
$14.99
|
|
San Diego vs. New York - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 17.8% less for clothing
|
San Diego
|
New York
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$60.72
|
$49.49
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$58.44
|
$44.18
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$105.68
|
$85.00
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$126.25
|
$115.57
|
|
San Diego vs. New York - 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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