Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Ashburn, VA and San Jose

For one person, living is cheaper in San Jose: $2,107 a month against $3,341 in Ashburn, VA, rent and utilities included – about $14,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

159

Cost of Living Index in Ashburn, VA
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Ashburn, VA Living Index
101

Cost of Living Index in San Jose
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San Jose Living Index

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Ashburn, VA

🇺🇸 United States

$3,341

/mo nomad

San Jose

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$2,107

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Ashburn, VA 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 Ashburn, VA and in San Jose actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $3,341 in Ashburn, VA versus $2,107 in San Jose.

Ashburn, VA $3,341
San Jose $2,107

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,512 in Ashburn, VA versus $3,081 in San Jose.

Ashburn, VA $4,512
San Jose $3,081

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,683 in Ashburn, VA versus $4,054 in San Jose.

Ashburn, VA $5,683
San Jose $4,054

Living in Ashburn, VA is roughly 59% more expensive than in San Jose, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Ashburn, VA 147% above, San Jose 56% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$24.27 $24.27

$12.37 ₡5,563

96.20%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$90.4 $90.4

$62.4 ₡28.0K

44.84%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.16 $13.16

$11.71 ₡5,264

12.38%

Cappuccino

$5.99 $5.99

$4.54 ₡2,040

31.94%

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

$3.02 $3.02

$2.75 ₡1,238

9.82%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.66 $2.66

$1.86 ₡837

43.01%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.11 $8.11

$3.35 ₡1,505

142.09%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$10.10 $10.10

$4.32 ₡1,944

133.80%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.12 $1.12

$2.36 ₡1,061

-52.54%

White Bread (500g)

$4.11 $4.11

$3.07 ₡1,379

33.88%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$5.16 $5.16

$2.51 ₡1,128

105.58%

Eggs

$5.45 $5.45

$3.53 ₡1,585

54.39%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.20 $17.20

$10.54 ₡4,738

63.19%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$15.26 $15.26

$10.57 ₡4,754

44.37%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$18.31 $18.31

$13.92 ₡6,261

31.54%

Apples (1kg)

$5.39 $5.39

$5.20 ₡2,338

3.65%

Banana (1kg)

$2.35 $2.35

$1.65 ₡740

42.42%

Oranges (1kg)

$6.51 $6.51

$4.89 ₡2,198

33.13%

Tomato (1kg)

$5.71 $5.71

$3.84 ₡1,728

48.70%

Potato (1kg)

$2.79 $2.79

$3.91 ₡1,757

-28.64%

Onion (1kg)

$3.91 $3.91

$3.76 ₡1,692

3.99%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.29 $2.29

$1.12 ₡504

104.46%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.73 $2.73

$3.22 ₡1,447

-15.22%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$9.66 $9.66

$6.02 ₡2,706

60.47%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.13 $16.13

$19.84 ₡8,919

-18.70%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.35 $2.35

$2.81 ₡1,264

-16.37%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.59 $4.59

$3.65 ₡1,643

25.75%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.27 $2.27

$1.08 ₡487

110.19%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$71.6 $71.6

$65.2 ₡29.3K

9.70%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.11 $4.11

$2.26 ₡1,018

81.86%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.53 $1.53

$1.78 ₡799

-14.04%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$23.78 $23.78

$7.90 ₡3,551

201.01%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.04 $1.04

$1.50 ₡673

-30.67%

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

$35.7K $35.7K

$33.5K ₡15.1M

6.55%

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

$25.9K $25.9K

$42.3K ₡19.0M

-38.78%

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

$160 $160

$93.2 ₡41.9K

71.17%

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

$66.4 $66.4

$36.13 ₡16.2K

83.84%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$78.5 $78.5

$60.6 ₡27.2K

29.61%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$62.0 $62.0

$68.9 ₡31.0K

-10.11%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$12.08 $12.08

$24.94 ₡11.2K

-51.56%

Cinema Ticket

$17.70 $17.70

$7.67 ₡3,449

130.77%

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

$1,589 $1,589

$972 ₡436.9K

63.47%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$28.0K $28.0K

$18.9K ₡8.5M

48.41%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.0 $53.0

$70.6 ₡31.8K

-25.02%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.47 $44.47

$56.7 ₡25.5K

-21.54%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$97.3 $97.3

$129 ₡57.8K

-24.38%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$127 $127

$131 ₡58.8K

-3.08%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,981 $1,981

$1,170 ₡525.9K

69.37%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,828 $1,828

$943 ₡424.1K

93.83%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$4,119 $4,119

$1,984 ₡892.0K

107.64%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,242 $2,242

$1,400 ₡629.5K

60.12%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,934 $2,934

$2,681 ₡1.2M

9.42%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,103 $3,103

$2,037 ₡915.8K

52.35%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$7,478 $7,478

$987 ₡443.6K

657.91%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.89

8.62

-20.07%

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

Last update for Ashburn, VA: November 2, 2026

Last update for San Jose: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Ashburn, VA

$1.8K 54.7%

San Jose

$943 44.8% 48.4% $885

Groceries & Markets

Ashburn, VA

$485 14.5%

San Jose

$403 19.1% 16.9% $82

Eating Out

Ashburn, VA

$389 11.6%

San Jose

$232 11% 40.3% $157

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ashburn, VA

$304 9.1%

San Jose

$190 9% 37.6% $115

Clothing & Footwear

Ashburn, VA

$145 4.3%

San Jose

$174 8.3% 20.3% $29

Sport & Entertainment

Ashburn, VA

$97 2.9%

San Jose

$84 4% 13.4% $13

Getting Around

Ashburn, VA

$92 2.8%

San Jose

$81 3.8% 12.7% $12

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,981 in Ashburn, VA and $1,170 in San Jose. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Ashburn, VA pays about 7.6 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $90 in Ashburn, VA vs $62 in San Jose for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $485 vs $403 per month, with San Jose cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Ashburn, VA

🇨🇷 San Jose

🕒 Local time

10:41 10:41 AM

09:41 9:41 AM

1 h behind Ashburn, VA

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

43,511

342,188 Capital

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.89 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, EUR to USD – United States Dollar Converter

🇨🇷 Costa Rican Colón (₡)

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

United States Dollar exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.89 EUR).

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 450 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD). 1 EUR = 505 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR).

CRC to USD in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Ashburn, VA San Jose 3,300 km ≈ 4 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Ashburn, VA
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

Ashburn, VA vs San Jose: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $3,341 in Ashburn, VA and $2,107 in San Jose, so San Jose is about 37% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Ashburn, VA is about 7.6 times higher, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,981 in Ashburn, VA versus $1,170 in San Jose. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $1,589 in Ashburn, VA versus $972 in San Jose. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 20% higher in Ashburn, VA. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $2,107 in San Jose versus $3,341 in Ashburn, VA, a $2,500 budget is realistic in San Jose but tight or insufficient in Ashburn, VA. The gap between the two cities makes San Jose the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Expats usually find San Jose gentler on the wallet – expenses run 37% less than in Ashburn, VA. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.