Cost of living comparison
compared to
Pretoria vs. San Jose Cost of Living Summary
Pretoria is 23.7% cheaper than San Jose.
- Restaurants
-
pay 39.7% less in Pretoria
- Groceries
-
pay 42.5% less in Pretoria
- Transportation
-
pay 60.0% more in Pretoria
- Housing
-
pay 19.2% less in Pretoria
- Childcare
-
pay 68.0% less in Pretoria
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 31.9% less in Pretoria
- Clothing
-
pay 24.7% less in Pretoria
Expenses including childcare, groceries, restaurants, entertainment and sports, clothing, and housing are lower in Pretoria.
Pretoria vs. San Jose Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Pretoria instead of San Jose, you would:
pay 39.7% less for restaurants
|
San Jose
|
Pretoria
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$9.95
CRC4,947.81
|
$8.64
ZAR147.89
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$9.91
CRC4,924.29
|
$5.04
ZAR86.27
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.06
CRC1,022.01
|
$1.08
ZAR18.50
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$1.67
CRC831.76
|
$0.85
ZAR14.58
|
|
San Jose vs. Pretoria - Cost of restaurants
pay 42.5% less for groceries
|
San Jose
|
Pretoria
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$2.64
CRC1,311.09
|
$1.06
ZAR18.16
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$4.95
CRC2,462.15
|
$4.04
ZAR69.13
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$7.78
CRC3,868.62
|
$4.70
ZAR80.48
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$2.88
CRC1,429.67
|
$2.48
ZAR42.36
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$3.97
CRC1,971.17
|
$2.11
ZAR36.15
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.94
CRC963.65
|
$0.76
ZAR13.02
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.65
CRC324.89
|
$0.71
ZAR12.19
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.95
CRC967.90
|
$0.75
ZAR12.83
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$1.58
CRC786.24
|
$0.76
ZAR13.02
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.55
CRC768.91
|
$0.60
ZAR10.20
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.43
CRC711.41
|
$0.55
ZAR9.34
|
|
San Jose vs. Pretoria - Cost of groceries
pay 60.0% more for transportation
|
San Jose
|
Pretoria
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$5.39
CRC2,678.58
|
$5.00
ZAR85.49
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$41.21
CRC20,485.06
|
$170.26
ZAR2,913.51
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$37,640.45
CRC18,712,315.88
|
$20,166.39
ZAR345,085.73
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$16.12
CRC8,011.83
|
$12.96
ZAR221.84
|
|
San Jose vs. Pretoria - Cost of transportation
pay 19.2% less for housing
|
San Jose
|
Pretoria
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$58.88
CRC29,268.77
|
$36.76
ZAR629.04
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$891.63
CRC443,258.89
|
$407.94
ZAR6,980.59
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$560.77
CRC278,778.03
|
$411.01
ZAR7,033.18
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$68.88
CRC34,242.87
|
$97.62
ZAR1,670.51
|
|
San Jose vs. Pretoria - Cost of housing
pay 68.0% less for childcare
|
San Jose
|
Pretoria
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$600.27
CRC298,412.20
|
$202.82
ZAR3,470.58
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$12,608.22
CRC6,267,964.49
|
$3,822.97
ZAR65,418.40
|
|
San Jose vs. Pretoria - Cost of childcare
pay 31.9% less for entertainment and sports
|
San Jose
|
Pretoria
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$2.67
CRC1,329.56
|
$2.30
ZAR39.44
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$3.85
CRC1,915.58
|
$2.15
ZAR36.72
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$5.15
CRC2,560.63
|
$2.88
ZAR49.30
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$55.98
CRC27,831.01
|
$35.87
ZAR613.80
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$9.91
CRC4,924.29
|
$7.78
ZAR133.10
|
|
San Jose vs. Pretoria - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 24.7% less for clothing
|
San Jose
|
Pretoria
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$61.74
CRC30,694.76
|
$50.50
ZAR864.09
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$51.32
CRC25,512.74
|
$33.12
ZAR566.83
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$120.28
CRC59,794.99
|
$89.07
ZAR1,524.13
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$106.98
CRC53,182.37
|
$86.43
ZAR1,478.94
|
|
San Jose vs. Pretoria - 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
Change currency:
Compare countries by overall cost of living
See the
cost of living in Costa Rica vs. South Africa.
This provides a comparison of the average cost of living from cities within Costa Rica and South Africa.
Help us improve these prices
MyLifeElsewhere is a collaborative project. Please enter price information for your location to help assist us in making these comparisons more accurate.
Learn more
ASK THE ELSEWHERE COMMUNITY
Join the Elsewhere community and ask a question about Pretoria or San Jose. It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.