Cost of living comparison
compared to
San Jose vs. San Juan Cost of Living Summary
San Jose is 0.5% cheaper than San Juan.
- Restaurants
-
pay 8.4% less in San Jose
- Groceries
-
pay 13.0% less in San Jose
- Transportation
-
pay 29.8% more in San Jose
- Housing
-
pay 40.2% less in San Jose
- Childcare
-
pay 24.4% more in San Jose
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 10.2% less in San Jose
- Clothing
-
pay 13.8% more in San Jose
The cost of transportation, childcare, and clothing in San Jose are more expensive than in San Juan. Expenses including housing, groceries, entertainment and sports, and restaurants are lower in San Jose.
San Jose vs. San Juan Cost Breakdown
If you lived in San Jose instead of San Juan, you would:
pay 8.4% less for restaurants
|
San Juan
|
San Jose
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$20.00
|
$9.95
CRC4,947.81
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$11.58
|
$9.91
CRC4,924.29
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$1.84
|
$2.06
CRC1,022.01
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$1.40
|
$1.67
CRC831.76
|
|
San Juan vs. San Jose - Cost of restaurants
pay 13.0% less for groceries
|
San Juan
|
San Jose
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$3.40
|
$2.64
CRC1,311.09
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$4.74
|
$4.95
CRC2,462.15
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$8.97
|
$7.78
CRC3,868.62
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$6.42
|
$2.88
CRC1,429.67
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$3.85
|
$3.97
CRC1,971.17
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$2.56
|
$1.94
CRC963.65
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$1.09
|
$0.65
CRC324.89
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.77
|
$1.95
CRC967.90
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$1.84
|
$1.58
CRC786.24
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.91
|
$1.55
CRC768.91
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.12
|
$1.43
CRC711.41
|
|
San Juan vs. San Jose - Cost of groceries
pay 29.8% more for transportation
|
San Juan
|
San Jose
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$3.65
|
$5.39
CRC2,678.58
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$30.00
|
$41.21
CRC20,485.06
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$36,000.00
|
$37,640.45
CRC18,712,315.88
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) | ?? |
$16.12
CRC8,011.83
|
|
San Juan vs. San Jose - Cost of transportation
pay 40.2% less for housing
|
San Juan
|
San Jose
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$77.14
|
$58.88
CRC29,268.77
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,258.33
|
$891.63
CRC443,258.89
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$765.00
|
$560.77
CRC278,778.03
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$370.88
|
$68.88
CRC34,242.87
|
|
San Juan vs. San Jose - Cost of housing
pay 24.4% more for childcare
|
San Juan
|
San Jose
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$470.00
|
$600.27
CRC298,412.20
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$10,400.00
|
$12,608.22
CRC6,267,964.49
|
|
San Juan vs. San Jose - Cost of childcare
pay 10.2% less for entertainment and sports
|
San Juan
|
San Jose
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$3.00
|
$2.67
CRC1,329.56
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$3.73
|
$3.85
CRC1,915.58
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$12.00
|
$5.15
CRC2,560.63
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$41.66
|
$55.98
CRC27,831.01
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$12.50
|
$9.91
CRC4,924.29
|
|
San Juan vs. San Jose - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 13.8% more for clothing
|
San Juan
|
San Jose
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$47.33
|
$61.74
CRC30,694.76
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$56.25
|
$51.32
CRC25,512.74
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$88.33
|
$120.28
CRC59,794.99
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$110.00
|
$106.98
CRC53,182.37
|
|
San Juan vs. San Jose - 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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