Cost of living comparison
compared to
Washington vs. San Marcos Cost of Living Summary
Washington is 51.5% more expensive than San Marcos.
- Restaurants
-
pay 23.1% more in Washington
- Groceries
-
pay 53.2% more in Washington
- Transportation
-
pay 13.7% more in Washington
- Housing
-
pay 34.9% more in Washington
- Childcare
-
pay 2.7 times more in Washington
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 36.8% more in Washington
- Clothing
-
pay 24.1% more in Washington
The cost of childcare, groceries, entertainment and sports, housing, clothing, and restaurants in Washington are more expensive than in San Marcos. Notably, childcare is significantly more expensive in Washington.
Washington vs. San Marcos Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Washington instead of San Marcos, you would:
pay 23.1% more for restaurants
|
San Marcos
|
Washington
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$19.00
|
$25.00
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$10.00
|
$12.00
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.76
|
$3.20
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.23
|
$2.79
|
|
San Marcos vs. Washington - Cost of restaurants
pay 53.2% more for groceries
|
San Marcos
|
Washington
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$3.23
|
$4.43
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$4.91
|
$8.04
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$3.44
|
$4.19
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$3.83
|
$4.55
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$5.20
|
$7.74
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.88
|
$2.95
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.54
|
$0.92
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.67
|
$2.20
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$1.12
|
$3.00
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.20
|
$1.35
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.05
|
$1.64
|
|
San Marcos vs. Washington - Cost of groceries
pay 13.7% more for transportation
|
San Marcos
|
Washington
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$2.80
|
$3.53
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass | ?? |
$77.50
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$36,278.39
|
$35,699.74
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$14.39
|
$16.73
|
|
San Marcos vs. Washington - Cost of transportation
pay 34.9% more for housing
|
San Marcos
|
Washington
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$70.76
|
$69.41
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,340.00
|
$2,568.48
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,400.00
|
$2,088.16
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$145.65
|
$146.54
|
|
San Marcos vs. Washington - Cost of housing
pay 2.7 times more for childcare
|
San Marcos
|
Washington
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$670.00
|
$2,650.00
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$26,120.00
|
$40,166.67
|
|
San Marcos vs. Washington - Cost of childcare
pay 36.8% more for entertainment and sports
|
San Marcos
|
Washington
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$6.00
|
$8.00
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$4.82
|
$6.07
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$8.00
|
$13.00
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$69.00
|
$103.76
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$15.00
|
$16.75
|
|
San Marcos vs. Washington - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 24.1% more for clothing
|
San Marcos
|
Washington
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$45.57
|
$76.00
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$44.00
|
$48.40
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$98.95
|
$104.31
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$116.43
|
$133.22
|
|
San Marcos vs. Washington - 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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