Cost of living comparison
compared to
Puerto Rico vs. United States Cost of Living Summary
Puerto Rico is 21.0% cheaper than United States overall.
- Restaurants
-
pay 25.9% less in Puerto Rico
- Groceries
-
pay 4.4% more in Puerto Rico
- Transportation
-
pay 20.0% less in Puerto Rico
- Housing
-
pay 14.8% less in Puerto Rico
- Childcare
-
pay 62.6% less in Puerto Rico
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 25.9% less in Puerto Rico
- Clothing
-
pay 2.0% less in Puerto Rico
Expenses including childcare, restaurants, entertainment and sports, transportation, housing, and clothing are lower in Puerto Rico.
Puerto Rico vs. United States Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Puerto Rico instead of United States, you would:
pay 25.9% less for restaurants
|
United States
|
Puerto Rico
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$19.45
|
$15.10
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$11.12
|
$10.01
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.56
|
$1.58
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.00
|
$1.35
|
|
United States vs. Puerto Rico - Cost of restaurants
pay 4.4% more for groceries
|
United States
|
Puerto Rico
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$3.56
|
$3.18
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$6.50
|
$4.16
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$3.97
|
$8.11
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$4.27
|
$5.34
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$5.41
|
$3.76
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$2.37
|
$2.50
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.78
|
$1.06
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$2.04
|
$1.54
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$2.21
|
$1.84
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.34
|
$1.65
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.38
|
$1.04
|
|
United States vs. Puerto Rico - Cost of groceries
pay 20.0% less for transportation
|
United States
|
Puerto Rico
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$3.41
|
$3.65
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$65.85
|
$35.20
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$32,336.38
|
$34,700.00
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$17.61
|
$9.22
|
|
United States vs. Puerto Rico - Cost of transportation
pay 14.8% less for housing
|
United States
|
Puerto Rico
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$68.97
|
$62.46
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,664.59
|
$800.93
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,416.15
|
$580.00
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$150.19
|
$242.07
|
|
United States vs. Puerto Rico - Cost of housing
pay 62.6% less for childcare
|
United States
|
Puerto Rico
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$1,387.27
|
$453.00
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$23,196.46
|
$9,760.00
|
|
United States vs. Puerto Rico - Cost of childcare
pay 25.9% less for entertainment and sports
|
United States
|
Puerto Rico
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$5.84
|
$2.73
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$5.15
|
$3.38
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$9.90
|
$11.21
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$51.45
|
$37.37
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$13.64
|
$9.90
|
|
United States vs. Puerto Rico - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 2.0% less for clothing
|
United States
|
Puerto Rico
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$51.08
|
$42.97
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$41.81
|
$54.22
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$87.56
|
$81.06
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$112.04
|
$96.00
|
|
United States vs. Puerto Rico - 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: November 2025
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