Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Fall River, MA and San Jose

For one person, living is cheaper in San Jose: $2,107 a month against $2,694 in Fall River, MA, rent and utilities included – about $7,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

130

Cost of Living Index in Fall River, MA
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Fall River, MA Living Index
101

Cost of Living Index in San Jose
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San Jose Living Index

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Fall River, MA

🇺🇸 United States

$2,694

/mo nomad

San Jose

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$2,107

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,694 in Fall River, MA versus $2,107 in San Jose.

Fall River, MA $2,694
San Jose $2,107

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,832 in Fall River, MA versus $3,081 in San Jose.

Fall River, MA $3,832
San Jose $3,081

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,970 in Fall River, MA versus $4,054 in San Jose.

Fall River, MA $4,970
San Jose $4,054

Living in Fall River, MA is roughly 28% 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: Fall River, MA 99% above, San Jose 56% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$18.29 $18.29

$12.37 ₡5,572

47.86%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$90.8 $90.8

$62.4 ₡28.1K

45.58%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.01 $12.01

$11.71 ₡5,272

2.56%

Cappuccino

$5.17 $5.17

$4.54 ₡2,043

13.88%

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

$2.91 $2.91

$2.75 ₡1,239

5.82%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.27 $2.27

$1.86 ₡839

22.04%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.95 $4.95

$3.35 ₡1,508

47.76%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.07 $8.07

$4.32 ₡1,947

86.81%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.03 $1.03

$2.36 ₡1,062

-56.36%

White Bread (500g)

$3.92 $3.92

$3.07 ₡1,381

27.69%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$5.51 $5.51

$2.51 ₡1,129

119.52%

Eggs

$5.45 $5.45

$3.53 ₡1,588

54.39%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.90 $15.90

$10.54 ₡4,746

50.85%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$14.35 $14.35

$10.57 ₡4,761

35.76%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.29 $17.29

$13.92 ₡6,270

24.21%

Apples (1kg)

$6.54 $6.54

$5.20 ₡2,341

25.77%

Banana (1kg)

$1.78 $1.78

$1.65 ₡742

7.88%

Oranges (1kg)

$5.53 $5.53

$4.89 ₡2,201

13.09%

Tomato (1kg)

$5.45 $5.45

$3.84 ₡1,730

41.93%

Potato (1kg)

$4.48 $4.48

$3.91 ₡1,760

14.58%

Onion (1kg)

$1.92 $1.92

$3.76 ₡1,694

-48.94%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.36 $2.36

$1.12 ₡505

110.71%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.66 $2.66

$3.22 ₡1,449

-17.39%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$13.01 $13.01

$6.02 ₡2,711

116.11%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.75 $13.75

$19.84 ₡8,932

-30.70%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.06 $2.06

$2.81 ₡1,266

-26.69%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.86 $3.86

$3.65 ₡1,646

5.75%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.08 ₡488

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$65.2 ₡29.4K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.58 $2.58

$2.26 ₡1,019

14.16%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.72 $1.72

$1.78 ₡800

-3.37%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$28.03 $28.03

$7.90 ₡3,557

254.81%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.11 $1.11

$1.50 ₡674

-26.00%

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

$27.3K $27.3K

$33.5K ₡15.1M

-18.33%

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

$26.1K $26.1K

$42.3K ₡19.0M

-38.17%

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

$235 $235

$93.2 ₡42.0K

152.30%

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

$55.5 $55.5

$36.13 ₡16.3K

53.67%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$79.6 $79.6

$60.6 ₡27.3K

31.34%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$27.41 $27.41

$68.9 ₡31.0K

-60.24%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$30.02 $30.02

$24.94 ₡11.2K

20.37%

Cinema Ticket

$16.17 $16.17

$7.67 ₡3,454

110.82%

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

$1,811 $1,811

$972 ₡437.6K

86.34%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$44.6K $44.6K

$18.9K ₡8.5M

136.33%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$56.8 $56.8

$70.6 ₡31.8K

-19.64%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.42 $38.42

$56.7 ₡25.5K

-32.22%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$113 $113

$129 ₡57.9K

-12.01%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$102 $102

$131 ₡58.9K

-22.14%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,157 $1,157

$1,170 ₡526.7K

-1.09%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,345 $1,345

$943 ₡424.7K

42.64%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,887 $1,887

$1,984 ₡893.3K

-4.86%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,931 $1,931

$1,400 ₡630.5K

37.95%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,834 $2,834

$2,681 ₡1.2M

5.71%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,788 $2,788

$2,037 ₡917.1K

36.89%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,317 $3,317

$987 ₡444.3K

236.24%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.85

8.62

-20.53%

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

Last update for Fall River, MA: 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

Fall River, MA

$1.3K 50%

San Jose

$943 44.8% 29.9% $402

Groceries & Markets

Fall River, MA

$461 17.1%

San Jose

$403 19.1% 12.7% $59

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Fall River, MA

$370 13.7%

San Jose

$190 9% 48.7% $180

Eating Out

Fall River, MA

$306 11.4%

San Jose

$232 11% 24% $74

Clothing & Footwear

Fall River, MA

$140 5.2%

San Jose

$174 8.3% 24.7% $34

Sport & Entertainment

Fall River, MA

$60 2.2%

San Jose

$84 4% 41% $25

Getting Around

Fall River, MA

$11 * 0.4%

San Jose

$81 3.8% 622% $70

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 $1,157 in Fall River, MA and $1,170 in San Jose. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Fall River, MA pays about 3.4 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $91 in Fall River, MA vs $62 in San Jose for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $461 vs $403 per month, with San Jose cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Fall River, MA

🇨🇷 San Jose

🕒 Local time

20:35 8:35 PM

19:35 7:35 PM

1 h behind Fall River, MA

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

88,857

342,188 Capital

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.891 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 = 0.891 EUR).

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 450 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD). 1 EUR = 506 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR).

CRC to USD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Fall River, MA San Jose 3,750 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

Fall River, MA
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

Fall River, MA vs San Jose: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

San Jose wins on cost – living expenses run 22% lower than in Fall River, MA. 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 Fall River, MA is about 3.4 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: $1,157 in Fall River, MA 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 15% higher in Fall River, MA. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you’ll spend $2,694 per month in Fall River, MA versus $2,107 in San Jose – San Jose is about 22% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

At $2,107 in San Jose versus $2,694 in Fall River, MA, a $2,500 budget is realistic in San Jose but tight or insufficient in Fall River, MA. 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, Fall River, MA on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.