Cost of living comparison

compared to

San Rafael vs. Sandnes Cost of Living Summary

San Rafael is 42.2% more expensive than Sandnes.

Restaurants
pay 9.1% less in San Rafael
Groceries
pay 47.2% more in San Rafael
Transportation
pay 21.5% less in San Rafael
Housing
pay 2.2 times more in San Rafael
Childcare
pay 4.4 times more in San Rafael
Entertainment and Sports
pay 9.0% less in San Rafael
Clothing
pay 34.2% less in San Rafael

The cost of childcare, housing, and groceries in San Rafael are more expensive than in Sandnes. Expenses including clothing, transportation, restaurants, and entertainment and sports are lower in San Rafael. Notably, childcare and housing are significantly more expensive in San Rafael.

San Rafael vs. Sandnes Cost Breakdown

If you lived in San Rafael instead of Sandnes, you would:

pay 9.1% less for restaurants

 
Sandnes
San Rafael
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant $24.95
NOK238.47
$25.00
 
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
$15.24
NOK145.68
$11.89
 
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) $3.34
NOK31.93
$3.00
 

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pay 47.2% more for groceries

 
Sandnes
San Rafael
Bread
1 loaf
$3.45
NOK32.93
$4.57
 
Local cheese (8 oz) $6.61
NOK63.19
$11.51
 
Milk (1 gallon) $9.02
NOK86.23
$5.52
 

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pay 21.5% less for transportation

 
Sandnes
San Rafael
Gasoline (1 gallon) $8.46
NOK80.87
$5.36
 
Monthly public transit pass $83.53
NOK798.23
$65.00
 
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) $43,324.58
NOK414K
$32,500.00
 

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pay 2.2 times more for housing

 
Sandnes
San Rafael
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
$82.03
NOK783.89
$61.25
 
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area $1,322.52
NOK12,638.63
$3,100.00
 
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center $952.73
NOK9,104.80
$3,166.67
 

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pay 4.4 times more for childcare

 
Sandnes
San Rafael
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly $288.87
NOK2,760.54
$2,117.50
 
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters $9,396.83
NOK89,800.76
$24,600.00
 

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pay 9.0% less for entertainment and sports

 
Sandnes
San Rafael
Domestic/local beer (1 pint) $13.52
NOK129.21
$5.50
 
Cappuccino in mid-range area $5.56
NOK53.13
$4.75
 
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
$16.18
NOK154.66
$11.00
 

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pay 34.2% less for clothing

 
Sandnes
San Rafael
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
$125.22
NOK1,196.68
$60.00
 
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
$59.73
NOK570.79
$42.33
 
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
$118.33
NOK1,130.82
$95.25
 

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We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world. Sources: MyLifeElsewhere's cost-of-living dataset (prices updated October 2026). How we calculate this

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