Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cayo Coco and San Jose

For one person, living is cheaper in Cayo Coco: $1,223 a month against $2,107 in San Jose, rent and utilities included – about $10,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

59

Cost of Living Index in Cayo Coco
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Cayo Coco Living Index
101

Cost of Living Index in San Jose
Learn more

San Jose Living Index

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Cayo Coco

🇨🇺 Cuba

$1,223

/mo nomad

San Jose

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$2,107

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,223 in Cayo Coco versus $2,107 in San Jose.

Cayo Coco $1,223
San Jose $2,107

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,683 in Cayo Coco versus $3,081 in San Jose.

Cayo Coco $1,683
San Jose $3,081

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,143 in Cayo Coco versus $4,054 in San Jose.

Cayo Coco $2,143
San Jose $4,054

Living in Cayo Coco costs roughly 42% less than in San Jose, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Cayo Coco is 10% below, San Jose is 56% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.96 CUP 119

$12.37 ₡5,563

-59.90%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$15.04 CUP 361

$62.4 ₡28.0K

-75.89%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.81 CUP 163

$11.71 ₡5,264

-41.84%

Cappuccino

$1.03 CUP 24.62

$4.54 ₡2,040

-77.31%

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

$2.01 CUP 48.36

$2.75 ₡1,238

-26.91%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.02 CUP 24.45

$1.86 ₡837

-45.16%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.98 CUP 47.60

$3.35 ₡1,505

-40.90%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.01 CUP 72.3

$4.32 ₡1,944

-30.32%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.98 CUP 71.6

$2.36 ₡1,061

26.27%

White Bread (500g)

$0.97 CUP 23.30

$3.07 ₡1,379

-68.40%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.01 CUP 48.25

$2.51 ₡1,128

-19.92%

Eggs

$3.51 CUP 84.2

$3.53 ₡1,585

-0.57%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.13 CUP 147

$10.54 ₡4,738

-41.84%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.07 CUP 122

$10.57 ₡4,754

-52.03%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.17 CUP 244

$13.92 ₡6,261

-26.94%

Apples (1kg)

$4.88 CUP 117

$5.20 ₡2,338

-6.15%

Banana (1kg)

$0.98 CUP 23.51

$1.65 ₡740

-40.61%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.99 CUP 23.71

$4.89 ₡2,198

-79.75%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.02 CUP 24.57

$3.84 ₡1,728

-73.44%

Potato (1kg)

$1.01 CUP 24.28

$3.91 ₡1,757

-74.17%

Onion (1kg)

$2.98 CUP 71.6

$3.76 ₡1,692

-20.74%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.97 CUP 23.34

$1.12 ₡504

-13.39%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.01 CUP 24.29

$3.22 ₡1,447

-68.63%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.97 CUP 71.4

$6.02 ₡2,706

-50.66%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.17 CUP 244

$19.84 ₡8,919

-48.74%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.98 CUP 47.45

$2.81 ₡1,264

-29.54%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.02 CUP 48.47

$3.65 ₡1,643

-44.66%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.08 ₡487

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$20.30 CUP 487

$65.2 ₡29.3K

-68.88%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.03 CUP 24.70

$2.26 ₡1,018

-54.42%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.99 CUP 23.73

$1.78 ₡799

-44.38%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$19.80 CUP 475

$7.90 ₡3,551

150.63%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.98 CUP 23.60

$1.50 ₡673

-34.67%

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

$69.9K CUP 1.7M

$33.5K ₡15.1M

108.85%

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

$79.4K CUP 1.9M

$42.3K ₡19.0M

87.62%

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

$40.32 CUP 968

$93.2 ₡41.9K

-56.73%

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

$40.02 CUP 960

$36.13 ₡16.2K

10.77%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$217 CUP 5,205

$60.6 ₡27.2K

257.95%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$39.89 CUP 957

$68.9 ₡31.0K

-42.13%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$9.93 CUP 238

$24.94 ₡11.2K

-60.18%

Cinema Ticket

$1.01 CUP 24.34

$7.67 ₡3,449

-86.83%

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

$91.3 CUP 2,192

$972 ₡436.9K

-90.60%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.7K CUP 354.0K

$18.9K ₡8.5M

-21.85%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$40.24 CUP 966

$70.6 ₡31.8K

-43.02%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$29.70 CUP 713

$56.7 ₡25.5K

-47.60%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$73.8 CUP 1,770

$129 ₡57.8K

-42.66%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$78.7 CUP 1,888

$131 ₡58.8K

-39.89%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$404 CUP 9,704

$1,170 ₡525.9K

-65.43%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$423 CUP 10.2K

$943 ₡424.1K

-55.16%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,060 CUP 25.4K

$1,984 ₡892.0K

-46.55%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$622 CUP 14.9K

$1,400 ₡629.5K

-55.57%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$298 CUP 7,147

$2,681 ₡1.2M

-88.89%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$346 CUP 8,295

$2,037 ₡915.8K

-83.03%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$20.39 CUP 489

$987 ₡443.6K

-97.93%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.62

16.01%

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

Last update for Cayo Coco: 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

Cayo Coco

$423 34.6%

San Jose

$943 44.8% 123% $520

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cayo Coco

$297 24.3%

San Jose

$190 9% 36.1% $107

Groceries & Markets

Cayo Coco

$234 19.2%

San Jose

$403 19.1% 71.8% $168

Eating Out

Cayo Coco

$101 8.2%

San Jose

$232 11% 131% $132

Clothing & Footwear

Cayo Coco

$100 8.2%

San Jose

$174 8.3% 74% $74

Sport & Entertainment

Cayo Coco

$42 3.4%

San Jose

$84 4% 101% $42

Getting Around

Cayo Coco

$26 * 2.2%

San Jose

$81 3.8% 207% $54

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 $404 in Cayo Coco and $1,170 in San Jose. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

San Jose pays about 48 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $15 in Cayo Coco vs $62 in San Jose for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $234 vs $403 per month, with Cayo Coco cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇺 Cayo Coco

🇨🇷 San Jose

🕒 Local time

22:40 10:40 PM

21:40 9:40 PM

1 h behind Cayo Coco

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

342,188 Capital

💱 Currency

Cuban Peso CUP $

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

100 CUP = 4.17 USD

100 CUP = 3.71 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, USD, EUR to CUP – Cuban Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇺 Cuban Peso ($)

Cuban Peso exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 24 CUP (100 CUP = 4.17 USD). 1 EUR = 26.94 CUP (100 CUP = 3.71 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).

USD to CUP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Cayo Coco San Jose 1,520 km ≈ 2 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Cayo Coco
San Jose

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

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated March 2026)

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

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Cayo Coco vs San Jose: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cayo Coco wins on cost – living expenses run 42% lower than in San Jose. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Cayo Coco the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 98% lower in Cayo Coco. That’s worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $404 in Cayo Coco versus $1,170 in San Jose. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Cayo Coco runs roughly 69% less than in San Jose. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

Childcare runs $91 in Cayo Coco versus $972 in San Jose. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Both cities are expensive relative to $1,000. Cayo Coco is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

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 Cayo Coco gentler on the wallet – expenses run 42% less than in San Jose. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.