Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between College Station, TX and San Jose

For one person, living is cheaper in San Jose: $1,938 a month against $2,108 in College Station, TX, rent and utilities included – about $2,000 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in College Station, TX outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

103

Cost of Living Index in College Station, TX
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College Station, TX Living Index
94

Cost of Living Index in San Jose
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San Jose Living Index

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College Station, TX

🇺🇸 United States

$2,108

/mo nomad

San Jose

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,938

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,108 in College Station, TX versus $1,938 in San Jose.

College Station, TX $2,108
San Jose $1,938

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,162 in College Station, TX versus $2,936 in San Jose.

College Station, TX $3,162
San Jose $2,936

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,216 in College Station, TX versus $3,934 in San Jose.

College Station, TX $4,216
San Jose $3,934

Living in College Station, TX is roughly 9% 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: College Station, TX 56% above, San Jose 44% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$15.08 $15.08

$12.38 ₡5,551

21.81%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$76.5 $76.5

$60.9 ₡27.3K

25.71%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.24 $12.24

$11.45 ₡5,135

6.90%

Cappuccino

$5.39 $5.39

$4.39 ₡1,967

22.78%

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

$2.84 $2.84

$2.70 ₡1,211

5.19%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.76 $1.76

$1.93 ₡864

-8.81%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.14 $5.14

$3.20 ₡1,433

60.62%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.63 $7.63

$4.41 ₡1,979

73.02%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.76 $0.76

$2.44 ₡1,093

-68.85%

White Bread (500g)

$3.33 $3.33

$3.05 ₡1,369

9.18%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.90 $3.90

$2.41 ₡1,081

61.83%

Eggs

$2.88 $2.88

$3.40 ₡1,523

-15.29%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.11 $12.11

$10.75 ₡4,823

12.65%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.47 $9.47

$10.43 ₡4,679

-9.20%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.17 $13.17

$13.99 ₡6,273

-5.86%

Apples (1kg)

$6.37 $6.37

$5.25 ₡2,353

21.33%

Banana (1kg)

$1.54 $1.54

$1.59 ₡712

-3.14%

Oranges (1kg)

$6.48 $6.48

$4.69 ₡2,103

38.17%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.84 $4.84

$3.95 ₡1,770

22.53%

Potato (1kg)

$4.07 $4.07

$3.92 ₡1,760

3.83%

Onion (1kg)

$2.92 $2.92

$3.68 ₡1,651

-20.65%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.76 $1.76

$1.12 ₡503

57.14%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.80 $1.80

$3.19 ₡1,429

-43.57%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$8.80 $8.80

$6.00 ₡2,692

46.67%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.12 $14.12

$19.56 ₡8,771

-27.81%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.77 $1.77

$2.82 ₡1,263

-37.23%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.91 $3.91

$3.59 ₡1,611

8.91%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.02 $1.02

$1.12 ₡503

-8.93%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$20.08 $20.08

$66.8 ₡30.0K

-69.94%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$10.13 $10.13

$2.50 ₡1,119

305.20%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.84 $1.84

$1.63 ₡733

12.88%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$59.6 $59.6

$8.50 ₡3,812

601.53%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.91 $0.91

$1.56 ₡701

-41.67%

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

$36.6K $36.6K

$22.4K ₡10.0M

63.42%

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

$25.0K $25.0K

$35.6K ₡16.0M

-29.68%

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

$175 $175

$95.2 ₡42.7K

84.18%

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

$39.25 $39.25

$35.58 ₡16.0K

10.31%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$55.6 $55.6

$58.6 ₡26.3K

-5.17%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$25.63 $25.63

$72.7 ₡32.6K

-64.73%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.43 $17.43

$24.85 ₡11.1K

-29.86%

Cinema Ticket

$11.57 $11.57

$7.58 ₡3,401

52.64%

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

$747 $747

$1,001 ₡449.0K

-25.40%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.7K $17.7K

$17.1K ₡7.7M

3.31%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$60.1 $60.1

$70.5 ₡31.6K

-14.80%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.42 $38.42

$55.8 ₡25.0K

-31.17%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$83.8 $83.8

$130 ₡58.2K

-35.42%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$123 $123

$131 ₡58.7K

-5.63%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,128 $1,128

$927 ₡415.8K

21.71%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$952 $952

$774 ₡347.2K

23.00%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,951 $1,951

$1,967 ₡882.0K

-0.81%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,595 $1,595

$1,288 ₡577.6K

23.86%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,161 $2,161

$2,274 ₡1.0M

-4.98%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,178 $2,178

$1,831 ₡821.0K

18.99%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,241 $4,241

$1,016 ₡455.8K

317.25%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.57

8.62

-23.78%

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

Last update for College Station, TX: October 12, 2026

Last update for San Jose: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

College Station, TX

$952 45.2%

San Jose

$774 40% 18.7% $178

Groceries & Markets

College Station, TX

$374 17.8%

San Jose

$401 20.7% 7.2% $27

Eating Out

College Station, TX

$281 13.4%

San Jose

$229 11.8% 18.5% $52

Monthly Utilities & Internet

College Station, TX

$270 12.8%

San Jose

$189 9.8% 29.9% $81

Clothing & Footwear

College Station, TX

$138 6.5%

San Jose

$174 9% 26.5% $37

Sport & Entertainment

College Station, TX

$49 2.3%

San Jose

$88 4.5% 80.1% $39

Getting Around

College Station, TX

$43 2.1%

San Jose

$82 4.2% 88.5% $38

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,128 in College Station, TX and $927 in San Jose. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

College Station, TX pays 317% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $77.0 in College Station, TX vs $61.0 in San Jose. Groceries flip the comparison at $374 vs $401, with College Station, TX cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇺🇸 College Station, TX

🇨🇷 San Jose

🕒 Local time

09:10 9:10 AM

08:10 8:10 AM

1 h behind College Station, TX

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

120,511

342,188 Capital

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.89 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.23 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 October 18, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 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).

CRC to USD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

College Station, TX San Jose 2,630 km ≈ 3 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

College Station, TX
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

College Station, TX vs San Jose: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

San Jose wins on cost – living expenses run 9% lower than in College Station, TX. 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 runs 317% higher in College Station, TX, 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: $1,128 in College Station, TX versus $927 in San Jose. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in San Jose runs roughly 233% less than in College Station, TX. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Childcare runs $747 in College Station, TX versus $1,001 in San Jose. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $1,938 in San Jose versus $2,108 in College Station, TX, a $2,500 budget is realistic in San Jose but tight or insufficient in College Station, TX. The gap between the two cities makes San Jose the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but San Jose delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $1,938 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes San Jose hard to pass up.

Expats usually find San Jose gentler on the wallet – expenses run 9% less than in College Station, TX. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.