Cost of living comparison
compared to
Brussels vs. San Juan Cost of Living Summary
Brussels is 46.6% more expensive than San Juan.
- Restaurants
-
pay 64.9% more in Brussels
- Groceries
-
pay 4.3% less in Brussels
- Transportation
-
pay 69.9% more in Brussels
- Housing
-
pay 6.9% less in Brussels
- Childcare
-
pay 2.2 times more in Brussels
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 39.1% more in Brussels
- Clothing
-
pay 39.2% more in Brussels
The cost of childcare, transportation, restaurants, clothing, and entertainment and sports in Brussels are more expensive than in San Juan. Expenses including housing and groceries are lower in Brussels. Notably, childcare is significantly more expensive in Brussels.
Brussels vs. San Juan Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Brussels instead of San Juan, you would:
pay 64.9% more for restaurants
|
San Juan
|
Brussels
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$20.00
|
$29.20
€25.18
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$11.58
|
$14.37
€12.39
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$1.84
|
$3.20
€2.76
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$1.40
|
$3.03
€2.61
|
|
San Juan vs. Brussels - Cost of restaurants
pay 4.3% less for groceries
|
San Juan
|
Brussels
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$3.40
|
$2.86
€2.47
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$4.74
|
$8.00
€6.90
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$8.97
|
$5.87
€5.06
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$6.42
|
$4.99
€4.31
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$3.85
|
$6.32
€5.45
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$2.56
|
$1.43
€1.23
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$1.09
|
$1.17
€1.01
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.77
|
$1.21
€1.04
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$1.84
|
$1.73
€1.49
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.91
|
$1.21
€1.04
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.12
|
$1.17
€1.01
|
|
San Juan vs. Brussels - Cost of groceries
pay 69.9% more for transportation
|
San Juan
|
Brussels
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$3.65
|
$7.25
€6.25
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$30.00
|
$64.24
€55.39
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$36,000.00
|
$35,037.93
€30,214.15
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) | ?? |
$27.33
€23.57
|
|
San Juan vs. Brussels - Cost of transportation
pay 6.9% less for housing
|
San Juan
|
Brussels
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$77.14
|
$56.00
€48.29
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,258.33
|
$1,315.56
€1,134.44
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$765.00
|
$1,101.57
€949.91
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$370.88
|
$190.72
€164.47
|
|
San Juan vs. Brussels - Cost of housing
pay 2.2 times more for childcare
|
San Juan
|
Brussels
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$470.00
|
$1,090.35
€940.24
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$10,400.00
|
$22,587.78
€19,478.06
|
|
San Juan vs. Brussels - Cost of childcare
pay 39.1% more for entertainment and sports
|
San Juan
|
Brussels
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$3.00
|
$6.89
€5.94
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$3.73
|
$4.78
€4.12
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$12.00
|
$13.43
€11.58
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$41.66
|
$40.10
€34.58
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$12.50
|
$16.23
€14.00
|
|
San Juan vs. Brussels - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 39.2% more for clothing
|
San Juan
|
Brussels
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$47.33
|
$99.27
€85.60
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$56.25
|
$46.81
€40.37
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$88.33
|
$112.78
€97.25
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$110.00
|
$149.88
€129.25
|
|
San Juan vs. Brussels - 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 Puerto Rico vs. Belgium.
This provides a comparison of the average cost of living from cities within Puerto Rico and Belgium.
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 Brussels or San Juan. It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.