Cost of living comparison
compared to
San Rafael vs. Washington Cost of Living Summary
San Rafael is 5.7% cheaper than Washington.
- Restaurants
-
pay 8.8% less in San Rafael
- Groceries
-
pay 7.7% more in San Rafael
- Transportation
-
pay 14.9% less in San Rafael
- Housing
-
pay 19.5% more in San Rafael
- Childcare
-
pay 24.5% less in San Rafael
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 0.2% less in San Rafael
- Clothing
-
pay 19.0% less in San Rafael
The cost of housing and groceries in San Rafael are more expensive than in Washington. Expenses including childcare, clothing, transportation, restaurants, and entertainment and sports are lower in San Rafael.
San Rafael vs. Washington Cost Breakdown
If you lived in San Rafael instead of Washington, you would:
pay 8.8% less for restaurants
|
Washington
|
San Rafael
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$25.00
|
$20.00
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$12.00
|
$10.95
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$3.20
|
$2.75
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.79
|
$3.00
|
|
Washington vs. San Rafael - Cost of restaurants
pay 7.7% more for groceries
|
Washington
|
San Rafael
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$4.43
|
$4.04
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$8.04
|
$7.66
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$4.19
|
$4.78
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$4.55
|
$4.59
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$7.74
|
$5.87
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$2.95
|
$2.21
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.92
|
$1.30
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$2.20
|
$2.75
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$3.00
|
$3.88
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.35
|
$1.75
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.64
|
$1.75
|
|
Washington vs. San Rafael - Cost of groceries
pay 14.9% less for transportation
|
Washington
|
San Rafael
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$3.53
|
$4.69
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$77.50
|
$30.00
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$35,699.74
|
$30,000.00
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$16.73
|
?? | |
Washington vs. San Rafael - Cost of transportation
pay 19.5% more for housing
|
Washington
|
San Rafael
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$69.41
|
$78.33
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$2,568.48
|
$3,366.67
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$2,088.16
|
$2,833.33
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$146.54
|
$144.15
|
|
Washington vs. San Rafael - Cost of housing
pay 24.5% less for childcare
|
Washington
|
San Rafael
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$2,650.00
|
$2,000.00
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$40,166.67
|
?? | |
Washington vs. San Rafael - Cost of childcare
pay 0.2% less for entertainment and sports
|
Washington
|
San Rafael
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$8.00
|
$8.00
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$6.07
|
$4.62
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$13.00
|
$11.00
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$103.76
|
$157.50
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$16.75
|
$14.50
|
|
Washington vs. San Rafael - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 19.0% less for clothing
|
Washington
|
San Rafael
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$76.00
|
$41.00
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$48.40
|
$38.50
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$104.31
|
$102.67
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$133.22
|
$123.00
|
|
Washington vs. San Rafael - 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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