Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Fairfax, VA and San Jose

For one person, living is cheaper in San Jose: $2,107 a month against $3,485 in Fairfax, VA, rent and utilities included – about $16,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

165

Cost of Living Index in Fairfax, VA
Learn more

Fairfax, VA Living Index
101

Cost of Living Index in San Jose
Learn more

San Jose Living Index

Jump to prices

Fairfax, VA

🇺🇸 United States

$3,485

/mo nomad

San Jose

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$2,107

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $3,485 in Fairfax, VA versus $2,107 in San Jose.

Fairfax, VA $3,485
San Jose $2,107

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,828 in Fairfax, VA versus $3,081 in San Jose.

Fairfax, VA $4,828
San Jose $3,081

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $6,172 in Fairfax, VA versus $4,054 in San Jose.

Fairfax, VA $6,172
San Jose $4,054

Living in Fairfax, VA is roughly 65% 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: Fairfax, VA 158% above, San Jose 56% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$19.06 $19.06

$12.37 ₡5,563

54.08%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$94.7 $94.7

$62.4 ₡28.0K

51.76%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.17 $12.17

$11.71 ₡5,264

3.93%

Cappuccino

$5.96 $5.96

$4.54 ₡2,040

31.28%

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

$3.20 $3.20

$2.75 ₡1,238

16.36%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.70 $2.70

$1.86 ₡837

45.16%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.89 $6.89

$3.35 ₡1,505

105.67%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.04 $8.04

$4.32 ₡1,944

86.11%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.10 $1.10

$2.36 ₡1,061

-53.39%

White Bread (500g)

$4.17 $4.17

$3.07 ₡1,379

35.83%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$5.13 $5.13

$2.51 ₡1,128

104.38%

Eggs

$5.54 $5.54

$3.53 ₡1,585

56.94%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.10 $17.10

$10.54 ₡4,738

62.24%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$14.93 $14.93

$10.57 ₡4,754

41.25%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$18.32 $18.32

$13.92 ₡6,261

31.61%

Apples (1kg)

$6.03 $6.03

$5.20 ₡2,338

15.96%

Banana (1kg)

$2.24 $2.24

$1.65 ₡740

35.76%

Oranges (1kg)

$5.78 $5.78

$4.89 ₡2,198

18.20%

Tomato (1kg)

$5.96 $5.96

$3.84 ₡1,728

55.21%

Potato (1kg)

$2.89 $2.89

$3.91 ₡1,757

-26.09%

Onion (1kg)

$3.71 $3.71

$3.76 ₡1,692

-1.33%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.40 $2.40

$1.12 ₡504

114.29%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.66 $2.66

$3.22 ₡1,447

-17.39%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$13.42 $13.42

$6.02 ₡2,706

122.92%

Wine (Bottle)

$15.88 $15.88

$19.84 ₡8,919

-19.96%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.67 $2.67

$2.81 ₡1,264

-4.98%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.63 $4.63

$3.65 ₡1,643

26.85%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.67 $2.67

$1.08 ₡487

147.22%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$69.8 $69.8

$65.2 ₡29.3K

6.98%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.03 $4.03

$2.26 ₡1,018

78.32%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.47 $1.47

$1.78 ₡799

-17.42%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$23.53 $23.53

$7.90 ₡3,551

197.85%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.05 $1.05

$1.50 ₡673

-30.00%

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

$34.4K $34.4K

$33.5K ₡15.1M

2.91%

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

$25.8K $25.8K

$42.3K ₡19.0M

-39.01%

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

$215 $215

$93.2 ₡41.9K

130.74%

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

$66.1 $66.1

$36.13 ₡16.2K

82.90%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$77.8 $77.8

$60.6 ₡27.2K

28.40%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$66.1 $66.1

$68.9 ₡31.0K

-4.08%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$25.11 $25.11

$24.94 ₡11.2K

0.68%

Cinema Ticket

$18.01 $18.01

$7.67 ₡3,449

134.81%

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

$1,917 $1,917

$972 ₡436.9K

97.28%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$38.7K $38.7K

$18.9K ₡8.5M

104.98%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.4 $53.4

$70.6 ₡31.8K

-24.41%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$54.6 $54.6

$56.7 ₡25.5K

-3.71%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$93.4 $93.4

$129 ₡57.8K

-27.35%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$113 $113

$131 ₡58.8K

-13.76%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,507 $2,507

$1,170 ₡525.9K

114.33%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,971 $1,971

$943 ₡424.1K

108.94%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,388 $3,388

$1,984 ₡892.0K

70.76%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,757 $2,757

$1,400 ₡629.5K

96.89%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,589 $5,589

$2,681 ₡1.2M

108.46%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,863 $3,863

$2,037 ₡915.8K

89.66%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,706 $4,706

$987 ₡443.6K

376.97%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.9

8.62

-19.95%

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

Last update for Fairfax, VA: October 31, 2026

Last update for San Jose: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Fairfax, VA

$2K 56.6%

San Jose

$943 44.8% 52.1% $1K

Groceries & Markets

Fairfax, VA

$485 13.9%

San Jose

$403 19.1% 16.9% $82

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Fairfax, VA

$359 10.3%

San Jose

$190 9% 47.1% $169

Eating Out

Fairfax, VA

$335 9.6%

San Jose

$232 11% 30.6% $102

Clothing & Footwear

Fairfax, VA

$141 4.1%

San Jose

$174 8.3% 23.1% $33

Sport & Entertainment

Fairfax, VA

$102 2.9%

San Jose

$84 4% 17.5% $18

Getting Around

Fairfax, VA

$92 2.6%

San Jose

$81 3.8% 12.2% $11

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $2,507 in Fairfax, VA and $1,170 in San Jose. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Fairfax, VA pays about 4.8 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $95 in Fairfax, VA vs $62 in San Jose for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $485 vs $403 per month, with San Jose cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Fairfax, VA

🇨🇷 San Jose

🕒 Local time

15:17 3:17 PM

14:17 2:17 PM

1 h behind Fairfax, VA

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

24,146

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

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Fairfax, VA San Jose 3,280 km ≈ 4 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Fairfax, VA
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

Fairfax, VA vs San Jose: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

San Jose wins on cost – living expenses run 40% lower than in Fairfax, VA. 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 Fairfax, VA is about 4.8 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: $2,507 in Fairfax, VA 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 20% higher in Fairfax, VA. 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 $95 in Fairfax, VA. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $2,107 in San Jose versus $3,485 in Fairfax, VA, a $2,500 budget is realistic in San Jose but tight or insufficient in Fairfax, VA. 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.

Expats usually find San Jose gentler on the wallet – expenses run 40% less than in Fairfax, VA. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.