Cost of living comparison
compared to
San Diego vs. United States Cost of Living Summary
San Diego is 25.0% more expensive than United States overall.
- Restaurants
-
pay 21.6% more in San Diego
- Groceries
-
pay 7.9% more in San Diego
- Transportation
-
pay 14.4% more in San Diego
- Housing
-
pay 54.5% more in San Diego
- Childcare
-
pay 25.0% more in San Diego
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 28.7% more in San Diego
- Clothing
-
pay 23.0% more in San Diego
The cost of housing, entertainment and sports, childcare, clothing, restaurants, and transportation in San Diego are more expensive than in United States.
San Diego vs. United States Cost Breakdown
If you lived in San Diego instead of United States, you would:
pay 21.6% more for restaurants
|
United States
|
San Diego
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$19.45
|
$21.00
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$11.12
|
$15.00
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.56
|
$3.03
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.00
|
$2.50
|
|
United States vs. San Diego - Cost of restaurants
pay 7.9% more for groceries
|
United States
|
San Diego
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$3.56
|
$4.57
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$6.50
|
$7.36
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$3.97
|
$4.78
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$4.27
|
$5.84
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$5.41
|
$6.07
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$2.37
|
$2.22
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.78
|
$0.78
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$2.04
|
$1.91
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$2.21
|
$2.26
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.34
|
$1.42
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.38
|
$1.12
|
|
United States vs. San Diego - Cost of groceries
pay 14.4% more for transportation
|
United States
|
San Diego
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$3.41
|
$4.76
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$65.85
|
$72.00
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$32,336.38
|
$31,965.00
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$17.61
|
$19.40
|
|
United States vs. San Diego - Cost of transportation
pay 54.5% more for housing
|
United States
|
San Diego
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$68.97
|
$82.19
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,664.59
|
$3,033.00
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,416.15
|
$2,538.64
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$150.19
|
$205.84
|
|
United States vs. San Diego - Cost of housing
pay 25.0% more for childcare
|
United States
|
San Diego
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$1,387.27
|
$1,750.00
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$23,196.46
|
$28,750.00
|
|
United States vs. San Diego - Cost of childcare
pay 28.7% more for entertainment and sports
|
United States
|
San Diego
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$5.84
|
$8.00
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$5.15
|
$5.90
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$9.90
|
$12.00
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$51.45
|
$73.21
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$13.64
|
$17.50
|
|
United States vs. San Diego - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 23.0% more for clothing
|
United States
|
San Diego
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$51.08
|
$60.72
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$41.81
|
$58.44
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$87.56
|
$105.68
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$112.04
|
$126.25
|
|
United States vs. San Diego - 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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