Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cozumel and San Jose

For one person, living is cheaper in Cozumel: $1,167 a month against $1,949 in San Jose, rent and utilities included – about $9,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

57

Cost of Living Index in Cozumel
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Cozumel Living Index
93

Cost of Living Index in San Jose
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San Jose Living Index

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Cozumel

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,167

/mo nomad

San Jose

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,949

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,167 in Cozumel versus $1,949 in San Jose.

Cozumel $1,167
San Jose $1,949

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,884 in Cozumel versus $2,903 in San Jose.

Cozumel $1,884
San Jose $2,903

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,602 in Cozumel versus $3,857 in San Jose.

Cozumel $2,602
San Jose $3,857

Living in Cozumel costs roughly 40% less than in San Jose, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Cozumel is 13% below, San Jose is 45% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.71 MX$158

$12.22 ₡5,510

-28.72%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$45.03 MX$819

$60.1 ₡27.1K

-25.11%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.23 MX$150

$11.77 ₡5,305

-30.08%

Cappuccino

$2.79 MX$50.7

$4.30 ₡1,939

-35.12%

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

$1.11 MX$20.20

$2.72 ₡1,226

-59.19%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.02 MX$18.62

$1.84 ₡830

-44.57%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.69 MX$30.74

$3.28 ₡1,480

-48.48%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.17 MX$57.7

$4.36 ₡1,966

-27.29%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.43 MX$26.05

$2.38 ₡1,074

-39.92%

White Bread (500g)

$1.64 MX$29.92

$3.12 ₡1,408

-47.44%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.76 MX$32.02

$2.41 ₡1,086

-26.97%

Eggs

$1.89 MX$34.40

$3.47 ₡1,564

-45.53%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.33 MX$188

$10.57 ₡4,767

-2.27%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.06 MX$147

$10.56 ₡4,758

-23.67%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.85 MX$234

$13.75 ₡6,196

-6.55%

Apples (1kg)

$2.47 MX$44.91

$5.04 ₡2,274

-50.99%

Banana (1kg)

$1.40 MX$25.46

$1.61 ₡727

-13.04%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.13 MX$38.71

$4.59 ₡2,069

-53.59%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.53 MX$27.90

$3.84 ₡1,731

-60.16%

Potato (1kg)

$2.24 MX$40.74

$3.77 ₡1,700

-40.58%

Onion (1kg)

$1.77 MX$32.13

$3.76 ₡1,693

-52.93%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.46 MX$26.57

$1.12 ₡506

30.36%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.20 MX$21.83

$3.20 ₡1,441

-62.50%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.43 MX$80.6

$5.84 ₡2,632

-24.14%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.96 MX$199

$19.73 ₡8,897

-44.45%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.54 MX$27.97

$2.75 ₡1,240

-44.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.57 MX$46.70

$3.66 ₡1,650

-29.78%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.69 MX$12.47

$1.12 ₡503

-38.39%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$67.2 MX$1,222

$65.1 ₡29.4K

3.18%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.84 MX$51.6

$2.46 ₡1,110

15.45%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.97 MX$35.87

$1.54 ₡692

27.92%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$9.29 MX$169

$8.46 ₡3,815

9.81%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.37 MX$24.88

$1.55 ₡699

-11.61%

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

$20.5K MX$373.6K

$21.7K ₡9.8M

-5.36%

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

$24.3K MX$442.7K

$34.9K ₡15.7M

-30.21%

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

$59.7 MX$1,087

$94.7 ₡42.7K

-36.90%

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

$20.99 MX$382

$35.11 ₡15.8K

-40.22%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$22.26 MX$405

$58.6 ₡26.4K

-61.98%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$39.08 MX$711

$72.2 ₡32.5K

-45.84%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$20.46 MX$372

$25.19 ₡11.4K

-18.78%

Cinema Ticket

$6.13 MX$112

$7.83 ₡3,532

-21.71%

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

$261 MX$4,745

$971 ₡437.9K

-73.15%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,671 MX$66.8K

$17.0K ₡7.7M

-78.41%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$54.3 MX$988

$71.6 ₡32.3K

-24.12%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$54.2 MX$985

$54.9 ₡24.7K

-1.26%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$104 MX$1,893

$129 ₡58.2K

-19.32%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$84.7 MX$1,541

$133 ₡60.0K

-36.39%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$606 MX$11.0K

$934 ₡420.9K

-35.10%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$399 MX$7,259

$770 ₡347.2K

-48.18%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,619 MX$29.4K

$1,945 ₡876.7K

-16.77%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$767 MX$13.9K

$1,316 ₡593.5K

-41.75%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,922 MX$35.0K

$2,277 ₡1.0M

-15.58%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,163 MX$21.2K

$1,795 ₡809.1K

-35.18%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$662 MX$12.0K

$1,006 ₡453.5K

-34.19%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.64

8.62

35.03%

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

Last update for Cozumel: October 5, 2026

Last update for San Jose: October 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cozumel

$399 33.9%

San Jose

$770 39.9% 93% $371

Groceries & Markets

Cozumel

$257 21.8%

San Jose

$399 20.7% 55% $142

Eating Out

Cozumel

$151 12.8%

San Jose

$228 11.8% 50.9% $77

Clothing & Footwear

Cozumel

$134 11.4%

San Jose

$175 9.1% 30.7% $41

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cozumel

$103 8.7%

San Jose

$188 9.8% 82.9% $85

Getting Around

Cozumel

$83 7%

San Jose

$80 4.1% 3.5% $2.9

Sport & Entertainment

Cozumel

$51 4.4%

San Jose

$88 4.6% 71.1% $36

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $606 in Cozumel and $934 in San Jose. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

San Jose pays 52% 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: $45.00 in Cozumel vs $60.0 in San Jose for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $257 vs $399 per month, with Cozumel cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Cozumel

🇨🇷 San Jose

🕒 Local time

01:44 1:44 AM

00:44 12:44 AM

1 h behind Cozumel

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

77,236

342,188 Capital

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.5 USD

100 MXN = 4.9 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 18.19 MXN (100 MXN = 5.5 USD). 1 EUR = 20.4 MXN (100 MXN = 4.9 EUR).

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 451 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD). 1 EUR = 506 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Cozumel San Jose 1,210 km ≈ 2 h nonstop flight

From you

Cozumel
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

Cozumel vs San Jose: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cozumel and San Jose differ by about 67% in total monthly costs ($1,167 vs $1,949 including rent). Cozumel is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 52% lower in San Jose. 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: $606 in Cozumel versus $934 in San Jose. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 55% higher in San Jose. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Dining out is cheaper in Cozumel – a meal for two runs $45.00 versus $60.0 in San Jose. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,167 in Cozumel versus $1,949 in San Jose, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Cozumel but tight or insufficient in San Jose. The gap between the two cities makes Cozumel 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.

Safety-wise, Cozumel and San Jose are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Cozumel gentler on the wallet – expenses run 67% less than in San Jose. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.