Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Aguadulce and San Jose

For one person, living is cheaper in Aguadulce: $958 a month against $1,938 in San Jose, rent and utilities included – about $11,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

47

Cost of Living Index in Aguadulce
Learn more

Aguadulce Living Index
94

Cost of Living Index in San Jose
Learn more

San Jose Living Index

Jump to prices

Aguadulce

🇵🇦 Panama

$958

/mo nomad

San Jose

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,938

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Aguadulce and in San Jose

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Aguadulce and in San Jose actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $958 in Aguadulce versus $1,938 in San Jose.

Aguadulce $958
San Jose $1,938

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,531 in Aguadulce versus $2,936 in San Jose.

Aguadulce $1,531
San Jose $2,936

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,104 in Aguadulce versus $3,934 in San Jose.

Aguadulce $2,104
San Jose $3,934

Living in Aguadulce costs roughly 51% less than in San Jose, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Aguadulce is 29% below, San Jose is 44% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.33 PAB 11.33

$12.38 ₡5,551

-8.48%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$47.63 PAB 47.63

$60.9 ₡27.3K

-21.74%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.86 PAB 7.86

$11.45 ₡5,135

-31.35%

Cappuccino

$4.07 PAB 4.07

$4.39 ₡1,967

-7.29%

Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.95 PAB 1.95

$2.70 ₡1,211

-27.78%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.57 PAB 1.57

$1.93 ₡864

-18.65%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.27 PAB 3.27

$3.20 ₡1,433

2.19%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.93 PAB 3.93

$4.41 ₡1,979

-10.88%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.92 PAB 1.92

$2.44 ₡1,093

-21.31%

White Bread (500g)

$2.56 PAB 2.56

$3.05 ₡1,369

-16.07%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.37 PAB 3.37

$2.41 ₡1,081

39.83%

Eggs

$2.67 PAB 2.67

$3.40 ₡1,523

-21.47%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.25 PAB 12.25

$10.75 ₡4,823

13.95%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.64 PAB 6.64

$10.43 ₡4,679

-36.34%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.34 PAB 10.34

$13.99 ₡6,273

-26.09%

Apples (1kg)

$4.13 PAB 4.13

$5.25 ₡2,353

-21.33%

Banana (1kg)

$1.86 PAB 1.86

$1.59 ₡712

16.98%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.26 PAB 4.26

$4.69 ₡2,103

-9.17%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.14 PAB 4.14

$3.95 ₡1,770

4.81%

Potato (1kg)

$3.39 PAB 3.39

$3.92 ₡1,760

-13.52%

Onion (1kg)

$4.22 PAB 4.22

$3.68 ₡1,651

14.67%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.43 PAB 2.43

$1.12 ₡503

116.96%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.76 PAB 1.76

$3.19 ₡1,429

-44.83%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.18 PAB 6.18

$6.00 ₡2,692

3.00%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.73 PAB 11.73

$19.56 ₡8,771

-40.03%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.37 PAB 1.37

$2.82 ₡1,263

-51.42%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.85 PAB 2.85

$3.59 ₡1,611

-20.61%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.24 PAB 0.24

$1.12 ₡503

-78.57%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$66.8 ₡30.0K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.47 PAB 2.47

$2.50 ₡1,119

-1.20%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.86 PAB 1.86

$1.63 ₡733

14.11%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$22.33 PAB 22.33

$8.50 ₡3,812

162.71%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.18 PAB 1.18

$1.56 ₡701

-24.36%

Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)

$21.3K PAB 21.3K

$22.4K ₡10.0M

-5.08%

Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)

$21.2K PAB 21.2K

$35.6K ₡16.0M

-40.36%

Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)

$132 PAB 132

$95.2 ₡42.7K

38.15%

SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)

$28.25 PAB 28.25

$35.58 ₡16.0K

-20.60%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$49.31 PAB 49.31

$58.6 ₡26.3K

-15.90%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$46.58 PAB 46.58

$72.7 ₡32.6K

-35.90%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.85 ₡11.1K

Cinema Ticket

$8.75 PAB 8.75

$7.58 ₡3,401

15.44%

Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)

$544 PAB 544

$1,001 ₡449.0K

-45.69%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,457 PAB 9,457

$17.1K ₡7.7M

-44.81%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$66.9 PAB 66.9

$70.5 ₡31.6K

-5.15%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$48.41 PAB 48.41

$55.8 ₡25.0K

-13.27%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$96.3 PAB 96.3

$130 ₡58.2K

-25.78%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$111 PAB 111

$131 ₡58.7K

-14.80%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$927 ₡415.8K

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$774 ₡347.2K

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,967 ₡882.0K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,288 ₡577.6K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,274 ₡1.0M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,831 ₡821.0K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,016 ₡455.8K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.39

8.62

-25.87%

CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Aguadulce: October 12, 2026

Last update for San Jose: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Groceries & Markets

Aguadulce

$325 33.9%

San Jose

$401 20.7% 23.4% $76

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Aguadulce

$209 21.8%

San Jose

$189 9.8% 9.4% $20

Eating Out

Aguadulce

$201 21%

San Jose

$229 11.8% 13.9% $28

Clothing & Footwear

Aguadulce

$145 15.2%

San Jose

$174 9% 19.8% $29

Sport & Entertainment

Aguadulce

$64 6.7%

San Jose

$88 4.5% 37.1% $24

Getting Around

Aguadulce

$13 * 1.3%

San Jose

$82 4.2% 544% $69

Accommodation & Living

Aguadulce

- * 0%

San Jose

$774 40%

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

Dining out: $48.00 in Aguadulce vs $61.0 in San Jose for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $325 vs $401 per month, with Aguadulce cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇦 Aguadulce

🇨🇷 San Jose

🕒 Local time

09:17 9:17 AM

08:17 8:17 AM

1 h behind Aguadulce

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

8,501

342,188 Capital

💱 Currency

Panamanian Balboa PAB B/.

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

1 PAB = 1 USD

1 PAB = 0.89 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, USD, EUR to PAB – Panamanian Balboa Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇵🇦 Panamanian Balboa (B/.)

Panamanian Balboa exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 1 PAB (1 PAB = 1 USD). 1 EUR = 1.12 PAB (1 PAB = 0.89 EUR).

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 448 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD). 1 EUR = 504 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR).

USD to PAB in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Aguadulce San Jose 430 km

From you

Aguadulce
San Jose

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Aguadulce vs San Jose: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Aguadulce wins on cost – living expenses run 102% lower than in San Jose. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Aguadulce the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You'd need roughly $1,436 in Aguadulce and $2,907 in San Jose to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Supermarket bills run roughly 23% higher in San Jose. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $958 per month in Aguadulce versus $1,938 in San Jose – a 102% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $958 in Aguadulce versus $1,938 in San Jose, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Aguadulce but tight or insufficient in San Jose. The gap between the two cities makes Aguadulce the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Aguadulce delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $958 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Aguadulce hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Aguadulce and San Jose are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Aguadulce gentler on the wallet – expenses run 102% less than in San Jose. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.