Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Atlantic City, NJ and San Jose

For one person, living is cheaper in San Jose: $2,107 a month against $2,815 in Atlantic City, NJ, rent and utilities included – about $8,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

134

Cost of Living Index in Atlantic City, NJ
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Atlantic City, NJ Living Index
101

Cost of Living Index in San Jose
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San Jose Living Index

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Atlantic City, NJ

🇺🇸 United States

$2,815

/mo nomad

San Jose

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$2,107

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,815 in Atlantic City, NJ versus $2,107 in San Jose.

Atlantic City, NJ $2,815
San Jose $2,107

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,199 in Atlantic City, NJ versus $3,081 in San Jose.

Atlantic City, NJ $4,199
San Jose $3,081

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,583 in Atlantic City, NJ versus $4,054 in San Jose.

Atlantic City, NJ $5,583
San Jose $4,054

Living in Atlantic City, NJ is roughly 34% 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: Atlantic City, NJ 108% above, San Jose 56% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$19.66 $19.66

$12.37 ₡5,563

58.93%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$99.2 $99.2

$62.4 ₡28.0K

58.99%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.30 $11.30

$11.71 ₡5,264

-3.50%

Cappuccino

$5.70 $5.70

$4.54 ₡2,040

25.55%

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

$2.26 $2.26

$2.75 ₡1,238

-17.82%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.92 $1.92

$1.86 ₡837

3.23%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.83 $5.83

$3.35 ₡1,505

74.03%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.94 $8.94

$4.32 ₡1,944

106.94%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.20 $1.20

$2.36 ₡1,061

-49.15%

White Bread (500g)

$3.41 $3.41

$3.07 ₡1,379

11.07%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$7.17 $7.17

$2.51 ₡1,128

185.66%

Eggs

$4.34 $4.34

$3.53 ₡1,585

22.95%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.03 $11.03

$10.54 ₡4,738

4.65%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$16.78 $16.78

$10.57 ₡4,754

58.75%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$20.36 $20.36

$13.92 ₡6,261

46.26%

Apples (1kg)

$7.74 $7.74

$5.20 ₡2,338

48.85%

Banana (1kg)

$3.81 $3.81

$1.65 ₡740

130.91%

Oranges (1kg)

$5.44 $5.44

$4.89 ₡2,198

11.25%

Tomato (1kg)

$6.11 $6.11

$3.84 ₡1,728

59.11%

Potato (1kg)

$3.92 $3.92

$3.91 ₡1,757

0.26%

Onion (1kg)

$4.69 $4.69

$3.76 ₡1,692

24.73%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.62 $2.62

$1.12 ₡504

133.93%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.43 $2.43

$3.22 ₡1,447

-24.53%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$14.24 $14.24

$6.02 ₡2,706

136.54%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.36 $13.36

$19.84 ₡8,919

-32.66%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.75 $2.75

$2.81 ₡1,264

-2.14%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.25 $3.25

$3.65 ₡1,643

-10.96%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.95 $2.95

$1.08 ₡487

173.15%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$90.0 $90.0

$65.2 ₡29.3K

37.99%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.94 $2.94

$2.26 ₡1,018

30.09%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.22 $2.22

$1.78 ₡799

24.72%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$41.74 $41.74

$7.90 ₡3,551

428.35%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.89 $0.89

$1.50 ₡673

-40.67%

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

$20.3K $20.3K

$33.5K ₡15.1M

-39.41%

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

$24.7K $24.7K

$42.3K ₡19.0M

-41.69%

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

$223 $223

$93.2 ₡41.9K

138.86%

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

$61.6 $61.6

$36.13 ₡16.2K

70.52%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$61.2 $61.2

$60.6 ₡27.2K

0.94%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$29.58 $29.58

$68.9 ₡31.0K

-57.09%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$50.8 $50.8

$24.94 ₡11.2K

103.77%

Cinema Ticket

$16.85 $16.85

$7.67 ₡3,449

119.69%

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

$494 $494

$972 ₡436.9K

-49.12%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,073 $7,073

$18.9K ₡8.5M

-62.52%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$69.9 $69.9

$70.6 ₡31.8K

-0.98%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$31.16 $31.16

$56.7 ₡25.5K

-45.02%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$117 $117

$129 ₡57.8K

-8.79%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$120 $120

$131 ₡58.8K

-8.27%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,762 $1,762

$1,170 ₡525.9K

50.63%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,323 $1,323

$943 ₡424.1K

40.31%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,377 $2,377

$1,984 ₡892.0K

19.80%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,132 $2,132

$1,400 ₡629.5K

52.28%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,349 $4,349

$2,681 ₡1.2M

62.21%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,265 $4,265

$2,037 ₡915.8K

109.41%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,006 $4,006

$987 ₡443.6K

306.00%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.78

8.62

-21.35%

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

Last update for Atlantic City, NJ: November 1, 2026

Last update for San Jose: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Atlantic City, NJ

$1.3K 47%

San Jose

$943 44.8% 28.7% $380

Groceries & Markets

Atlantic City, NJ

$492 17.5%

San Jose

$403 19.1% 18.1% $89

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Atlantic City, NJ

$345 12.3%

San Jose

$190 9% 45% $155

Eating Out

Atlantic City, NJ

$323 11.5%

San Jose

$232 11% 28.1% $91

Clothing & Footwear

Atlantic City, NJ

$152 5.4%

San Jose

$174 8.3% 14.3% $22

Getting Around

Atlantic City, NJ

$116 4.1%

San Jose

$81 3.8% 30.3% $35

Sport & Entertainment

Atlantic City, NJ

$63 2.3%

San Jose

$84 4% 33.2% $21

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,762 in Atlantic City, NJ and $1,170 in San Jose. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Atlantic City, NJ pays about 4.1 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $99 in Atlantic City, NJ vs $62 in San Jose for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $492 vs $403 per month, with San Jose cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Atlantic City, NJ

🇨🇷 San Jose

🕒 Local time

17:51 5:51 PM

16:51 4:51 PM

1 h behind Atlantic City, NJ

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

39,958

342,188 Capital

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.895 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.99 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 = 0.895 EUR).

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 450 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD). 1 EUR = 502 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.99 EUR).

CRC to USD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Atlantic City, NJ San Jose 3,410 km ≈ 4 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Atlantic City, NJ
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

Atlantic City, NJ vs San Jose: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,815 in Atlantic City, NJ and $2,107 in San Jose, so San Jose is about 25% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Atlantic City, NJ is about 4.1 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: $1,762 in Atlantic City, NJ versus $1,170 in San Jose. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 22% higher in Atlantic City, NJ. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Dining out is cheaper in San Jose – a meal for two runs $62 versus $99 in Atlantic City, NJ. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $2,107 in San Jose versus $2,815 in Atlantic City, NJ, a $2,500 budget is realistic in San Jose but tight or insufficient in Atlantic City, NJ. The gap between the two cities makes San Jose the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Expats usually find San Jose gentler on the wallet – expenses run 25% less than in Atlantic City, NJ. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.