Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Aurora, CO and San Jose

For one person, living is cheaper in San Jose: $2,107 a month against $2,625 in Aurora, CO, rent and utilities included – about $6,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

125

Cost of Living Index in Aurora, CO
Learn more

Aurora, CO Living Index
101

Cost of Living Index in San Jose
Learn more

San Jose Living Index

Jump to prices

Aurora, CO

🇺🇸 United States

$2,625

/mo nomad

San Jose

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$2,107

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,625 in Aurora, CO versus $2,107 in San Jose.

Aurora, CO $2,625
San Jose $2,107

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,299 in Aurora, CO versus $3,081 in San Jose.

Aurora, CO $4,299
San Jose $3,081

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,974 in Aurora, CO versus $4,054 in San Jose.

Aurora, CO $5,974
San Jose $4,054

Living in Aurora, CO is roughly 25% 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: Aurora, CO 94% above, San Jose 56% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$30.09 $30.09

$12.37 ₡5,563

143.25%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$66.9 $66.9

$62.4 ₡28.0K

7.26%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.88 $12.88

$11.71 ₡5,264

9.99%

Cappuccino

$6.04 $6.04

$4.54 ₡2,040

33.04%

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

$2.73 $2.73

$2.75 ₡1,238

-0.73%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.13 $2.13

$1.86 ₡837

14.52%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.94 $4.94

$3.35 ₡1,505

47.46%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.06 $6.06

$4.32 ₡1,944

40.28%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.29 $1.29

$2.36 ₡1,061

-45.34%

White Bread (500g)

$3.10 $3.10

$3.07 ₡1,379

0.98%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.94 $2.94

$2.51 ₡1,128

17.13%

Eggs

$4.47 $4.47

$3.53 ₡1,585

26.63%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.87 $11.87

$10.54 ₡4,738

12.62%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.81 $9.81

$10.57 ₡4,754

-7.19%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.08 $14.08

$13.92 ₡6,261

1.15%

Apples (1kg)

$4.50 $4.50

$5.20 ₡2,338

-13.46%

Banana (1kg)

$1.51 $1.51

$1.65 ₡740

-8.48%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.01 $3.01

$4.89 ₡2,198

-38.45%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.52 $4.52

$3.84 ₡1,728

17.71%

Potato (1kg)

$5.61 $5.61

$3.91 ₡1,757

43.48%

Onion (1kg)

$4.08 $4.08

$3.76 ₡1,692

8.51%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.95 $1.95

$1.12 ₡504

74.11%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$3.95 $3.95

$3.22 ₡1,447

22.67%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$10.19 $10.19

$6.02 ₡2,706

69.27%

Wine (Bottle)

$19.84 ₡8,919

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.77 $1.77

$2.81 ₡1,264

-37.01%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.65 ₡1,643

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.04 $3.04

$1.08 ₡487

181.48%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$133 $133

$65.2 ₡29.3K

104.31%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.53 $3.53

$2.26 ₡1,018

56.19%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.71 $1.71

$1.78 ₡799

-3.93%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$30.28 $30.28

$7.90 ₡3,551

283.29%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.01 $1.01

$1.50 ₡673

-32.67%

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

$28.4K $28.4K

$33.5K ₡15.1M

-15.13%

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

$27.3K $27.3K

$42.3K ₡19.0M

-35.35%

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

$156 $156

$93.2 ₡41.9K

67.81%

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

$82.3 $82.3

$36.13 ₡16.2K

127.82%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$51.2 $51.2

$60.6 ₡27.2K

-15.58%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$15.26 $15.26

$68.9 ₡31.0K

-77.86%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$9.91 $9.91

$24.94 ₡11.2K

-60.26%

Cinema Ticket

$18.60 $18.60

$7.67 ₡3,449

142.50%

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

$1,133 $1,133

$972 ₡436.9K

16.58%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,215 $9,215

$18.9K ₡8.5M

-51.17%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$57.3 $57.3

$70.6 ₡31.8K

-18.92%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$50.8 $50.8

$56.7 ₡25.5K

-10.43%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$105 $105

$129 ₡57.8K

-18.41%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$114 $114

$131 ₡58.8K

-13.10%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,865 $1,865

$1,170 ₡525.9K

59.47%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,215 $1,215

$943 ₡424.1K

28.78%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,415 $3,415

$1,984 ₡892.0K

72.12%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,826 $2,826

$1,400 ₡629.5K

101.85%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,147 $3,147

$2,681 ₡1.2M

17.39%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,704 $2,704

$2,037 ₡915.8K

32.77%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,265 $4,265

$987 ₡443.6K

332.26%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.26

8.62

-27.38%

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

Last update for Aurora, CO: November 3, 2026

Last update for San Jose: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Aurora, CO

$1.2K 46.3%

San Jose

$943 44.8% 22.3% $271

Eating Out

Aurora, CO

$408 15.6%

San Jose

$232 11% 43.1% $176

Groceries & Markets

Aurora, CO

$356 * 13.6%

San Jose

$403 19.1% 13.2% $47

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Aurora, CO

$290 11%

San Jose

$190 9% 34.5% $100

Getting Around

Aurora, CO

$158 6%

San Jose

$81 3.8% 48.8% $77

Clothing & Footwear

Aurora, CO

$147 5.6%

San Jose

$174 8.3% 18.4% $27

Sport & Entertainment

Aurora, CO

$52 2%

San Jose

$84 4% 60.6% $32

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

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,865 in Aurora, CO and $1,170 in San Jose. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Aurora, CO pays about 4.3 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $67 in Aurora, CO vs $62 in San Jose. Groceries flip the comparison at $356 vs $403, with Aurora, CO cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Aurora, CO

🇨🇷 San Jose

🕒 Local time

01:53 1:53 AM

02:53 2:53 AM

1 h ahead of Aurora, CO

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

180,542

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

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Aurora, CO San Jose 3,900 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

Aurora, CO
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

Aurora, CO vs San Jose: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

San Jose wins on cost – living expenses run 20% lower than in Aurora, CO. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making San Jose the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay in Aurora, CO is about 4.3 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: $1,865 in Aurora, CO versus $1,170 in San Jose. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Shoppers in Aurora, CO pay roughly 12% less for everyday groceries. It’s an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

Dining out is cheaper in San Jose – a meal for two runs $62 versus $67 in Aurora, CO. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $2,107 in San Jose versus $2,625 in Aurora, CO, a $2,500 budget is realistic in San Jose but tight or insufficient in Aurora, CO. 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.

It comes down to priorities – San Jose wins on affordability, Aurora, CO on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.