Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between George Town and San Jose

For one person, living is cheaper in San Jose: $1,949 a month against $4,862 in George Town, rent and utilities included – about $35,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

237

Cost of Living Index in George Town
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George Town Living Index
93

Cost of Living Index in San Jose
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San Jose Living Index

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George Town

🇰🇾 Cayman Islands

$4,862

/mo nomad

San Jose

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,949

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $4,862 in George Town versus $1,949 in San Jose.

George Town $4,862
San Jose $1,949

Estimated couple costs with rent: $7,338 in George Town versus $2,903 in San Jose.

George Town $7,338
San Jose $2,903

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $9,814 in George Town versus $3,857 in San Jose.

George Town $9,814
San Jose $3,857

Living in George Town is roughly 149% more expensive than in San Jose, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: George Town 263% above, San Jose 45% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$30.59 KYD 25.09

$12.22 ₡5,510

150.33%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$116 KYD 94.7

$60.1 ₡27.1K

92.10%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$16.82 KYD 13.79

$11.77 ₡5,305

42.91%

Cappuccino

$7.14 KYD 5.86

$4.30 ₡1,939

66.05%

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

$3.06 KYD 2.51

$2.72 ₡1,226

12.50%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.84 KYD 2.33

$1.84 ₡830

54.35%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.11 KYD 5.83

$3.28 ₡1,480

116.77%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$9.74 KYD 7.99

$4.36 ₡1,966

123.39%

Milk (1 liter)

$4.70 KYD 3.85

$2.38 ₡1,074

97.48%

White Bread (500g)

$4.13 KYD 3.38

$3.12 ₡1,408

32.37%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.41 KYD 3.62

$2.41 ₡1,086

82.99%

Eggs

$7.21 KYD 5.91

$3.47 ₡1,564

107.78%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$56.9 KYD 46.64

$10.57 ₡4,767

438.13%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$19.04 KYD 15.62

$10.56 ₡4,758

80.30%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.67 KYD 16.13

$13.75 ₡6,196

43.05%

Apples (1kg)

$7.55 KYD 6.19

$5.04 ₡2,274

49.80%

Banana (1kg)

$3.63 KYD 2.98

$1.61 ₡727

125.47%

Oranges (1kg)

$6.19 KYD 5.07

$4.59 ₡2,069

34.86%

Tomato (1kg)

$7.91 KYD 6.49

$3.84 ₡1,731

105.99%

Potato (1kg)

$4.12 KYD 3.38

$3.77 ₡1,700

9.28%

Onion (1kg)

$4.07 KYD 3.34

$3.76 ₡1,693

8.24%

Lettuce (1 head)

$3.19 KYD 2.62

$1.12 ₡506

184.82%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.26 KYD 1.86

$3.20 ₡1,441

-29.38%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$14.16 KYD 11.61

$5.84 ₡2,632

142.47%

Wine (Bottle)

$25.66 KYD 21.04

$19.73 ₡8,897

30.06%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$4.29 KYD 3.52

$2.75 ₡1,240

56.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.45 KYD 4.47

$3.66 ₡1,650

48.91%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.38 KYD 1.95

$1.12 ₡503

112.50%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$79.8 KYD 65.5

$65.1 ₡29.4K

22.59%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$19.15 KYD 15.70

$2.46 ₡1,110

678.46%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.74 KYD 3.07

$1.54 ₡692

142.86%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$44.62 KYD 36.59

$8.46 ₡3,815

427.42%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.58 KYD 1.30

$1.55 ₡699

1.94%

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

$42.1K KYD 34.6K

$21.7K ₡9.8M

94.16%

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

$42.0K KYD 34.4K

$34.9K ₡15.7M

20.44%

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

$450 KYD 369

$94.7 ₡42.7K

374.94%

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

$120 KYD 98.2

$35.11 ₡15.8K

240.93%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$113 KYD 92.6

$58.6 ₡26.4K

92.95%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$217 KYD 178

$72.2 ₡32.5K

200.19%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$34.74 KYD 28.48

$25.19 ₡11.4K

37.91%

Cinema Ticket

$18.64 KYD 15.28

$7.83 ₡3,532

138.06%

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

$1,818 KYD 1,490

$971 ₡437.9K

87.10%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$26.5K KYD 21.7K

$17.0K ₡7.7M

55.86%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.0 KYD 71.3

$71.6 ₡32.3K

21.56%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$74.1 KYD 60.8

$54.9 ₡24.7K

35.08%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$137 KYD 113

$129 ₡58.2K

6.50%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$146 KYD 119

$133 ₡60.0K

9.30%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,861 KYD 2,346

$934 ₡420.9K

206.39%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,479 KYD 2,033

$770 ₡347.2K

221.83%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$5,698 KYD 4,672

$1,945 ₡876.7K

192.99%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$4,775 KYD 3,915

$1,316 ₡593.5K

262.70%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$8,919 KYD 7,314

$2,277 ₡1.0M

291.71%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,270 KYD 1,861

$1,795 ₡809.1K

26.48%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$7,223 KYD 5,923

$1,006 ₡453.5K

617.98%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.62

-7.19%

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

Last update for George Town: 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

George Town

$2.5K 50.3%

San Jose

$770 39.9% 68.9% $1.7K

Groceries & Markets

George Town

$727 14.8%

San Jose

$399 20.7% 45.2% $329

Monthly Utilities & Internet

George Town

$682 13.8%

San Jose

$188 9.8% 72.4% $494

Eating Out

George Town

$460 9.3%

San Jose

$228 11.8% 50.4% $231

Sport & Entertainment

George Town

$254 5.2%

San Jose

$88 4.6% 65.4% $166

Clothing & Footwear

George Town

$200 4.1%

San Jose

$175 9.1% 12.5% $25

Getting Around

George Town

$127 2.6%

San Jose

$80 4.1% 37.3% $47

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $2,861 in George Town and $934 in San Jose. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

George Town pays 618% 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: $116 in George Town vs $60.0 in San Jose for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $727 vs $399 per month, with San Jose cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇰🇾 George Town

🇨🇷 San Jose

🕒 Local time

06:57 6:57 AM

05:57 5:57 AM

1 h behind George Town

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

28,089 Capital

342,188 Capital

💱 Currency

Cayman Islands Dollar KYD $

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

1 KYD = 1.22 USD

1 KYD = 1.09 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, USD, EUR to KYD – Cayman Islands Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇰🇾 Cayman Islands Dollar ($)

Cayman Islands Dollar exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 0.82 KYD (1 KYD = 1.22 USD). 1 EUR = 0.919 KYD (1 KYD = 1.09 EUR).

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 451 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD). 1 EUR = 505 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR).

USD to KYD in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

George Town San Jose 1,080 km ≈ 1 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

George Town
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

George Town vs San Jose: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

George Town and San Jose differ by about 149% in total monthly costs ($4,862 vs $1,949 including rent). San Jose is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 618% higher in George Town, 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: $2,861 in George Town versus $934 in San Jose. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $4,862 per month in George Town versus $1,949 in San Jose – a 149% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in San Jose runs roughly 23% less than in George Town. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $1,949 in San Jose versus $4,862 in George Town, a $2,500 budget is realistic in San Jose but tight or insufficient in George Town. 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.

Safety-wise, George Town 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 San Jose gentler on the wallet – expenses run 149% less than in George Town. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.