Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Gresham, OR and San Jose

For one person, living is cheaper in San Jose: $1,949 a month against $2,712 in Gresham, OR, rent and utilities included – about $9,200 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Gresham, OR outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

133

Cost of Living Index in Gresham, OR
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Gresham, OR Living Index
93

Cost of Living Index in San Jose
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San Jose Living Index

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Gresham, OR

🇺🇸 United States

$2,712

/mo nomad

San Jose

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,949

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,712 in Gresham, OR versus $1,949 in San Jose.

Gresham, OR $2,712
San Jose $1,949

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,681 in Gresham, OR versus $2,903 in San Jose.

Gresham, OR $3,681
San Jose $2,903

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,650 in Gresham, OR versus $3,857 in San Jose.

Gresham, OR $4,650
San Jose $3,857

Living in Gresham, OR is roughly 39% 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: Gresham, OR 102% above, San Jose 45% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$24.96 $24.96

$12.22 ₡5,510

104.26%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$83.4 $83.4

$60.1 ₡27.1K

38.70%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.26 $12.26

$11.77 ₡5,305

4.16%

Cappuccino

$5.88 $5.88

$4.30 ₡1,939

36.74%

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

$2.92 $2.92

$2.72 ₡1,226

7.35%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.69 $1.69

$1.84 ₡830

-8.15%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.34 $6.34

$3.28 ₡1,480

93.29%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.21 $7.21

$4.36 ₡1,966

65.37%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.04 $1.04

$2.38 ₡1,074

-56.30%

White Bread (500g)

$4.20 $4.20

$3.12 ₡1,408

34.62%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.16 $3.16

$2.41 ₡1,086

31.12%

Eggs

$4.18 $4.18

$3.47 ₡1,564

20.46%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.72 $11.72

$10.57 ₡4,767

10.88%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.46 $10.46

$10.56 ₡4,758

-0.95%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.84 $16.84

$13.75 ₡6,196

22.47%

Apples (1kg)

$4.39 $4.39

$5.04 ₡2,274

-12.90%

Banana (1kg)

$1.59 $1.59

$1.61 ₡727

-1.24%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.79 $2.79

$4.59 ₡2,069

-39.22%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.63 $2.63

$3.84 ₡1,731

-31.51%

Potato (1kg)

$2.14 $2.14

$3.77 ₡1,700

-43.24%

Onion (1kg)

$1.85 $1.85

$3.76 ₡1,693

-50.80%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.00 $2.00

$1.12 ₡506

78.57%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.71 $1.71

$3.20 ₡1,441

-46.56%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$11.83 $11.83

$5.84 ₡2,632

102.57%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.89 $10.89

$19.73 ₡8,897

-44.80%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.10 $2.10

$2.75 ₡1,240

-23.64%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.34 $2.34

$3.66 ₡1,650

-36.07%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.79 $2.79

$1.12 ₡503

149.11%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$65.1 ₡29.4K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.42 $4.42

$2.46 ₡1,110

79.67%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.77 $0.77

$1.54 ₡692

-50.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$23.95 $23.95

$8.46 ₡3,815

183.10%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.36 $1.36

$1.55 ₡699

-12.26%

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

$36.9K $36.9K

$21.7K ₡9.8M

70.12%

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

$25.3K $25.3K

$34.9K ₡15.7M

-27.46%

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

$198 $198

$94.7 ₡42.7K

109.32%

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

$72.0 $72.0

$35.11 ₡15.8K

105.07%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$66.6 $66.6

$58.6 ₡26.4K

13.66%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$30.31 $30.31

$72.2 ₡32.5K

-58.00%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$25.19 ₡11.4K

Cinema Ticket

$12.01 $12.01

$7.83 ₡3,532

53.38%

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

$1,350 $1,350

$971 ₡437.9K

38.95%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$13.0K $13.0K

$17.0K ₡7.7M

-23.35%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$41.07 $41.07

$71.6 ₡32.3K

-42.61%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$29.53 $29.53

$54.9 ₡24.7K

-46.16%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$84.3 $84.3

$129 ₡58.2K

-34.63%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$85.2 $85.2

$133 ₡60.0K

-36.03%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,681 $1,681

$934 ₡420.9K

79.99%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,528 $1,528

$770 ₡347.2K

98.38%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,842 $2,842

$1,945 ₡876.7K

46.13%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,888 $1,888

$1,316 ₡593.5K

43.41%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,277 ₡1.0M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,795 ₡809.1K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,028 $4,028

$1,006 ₡453.5K

300.36%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.7

8.62

-22.27%

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

Last update for Gresham, OR: 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

Gresham, OR

$1.5K 55.2%

San Jose

$770 39.9% 49.6% $758

Eating Out

Gresham, OR

$372 13.4%

San Jose

$228 11.8% 38.6% $144

Groceries & Markets

Gresham, OR

$351 12.7%

San Jose

$399 20.7% 13.6% $48

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Gresham, OR

$337 12.2%

San Jose

$188 9.8% 44.1% $148

Clothing & Footwear

Gresham, OR

$108 3.9%

San Jose

$175 9.1% 61.8% $67

Sport & Entertainment

Gresham, OR

$54 2%

San Jose

$88 4.6% 61.6% $33

Getting Around

Gresham, OR

$19 * 0.7%

San Jose

$80 4.1% 310% $60

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 $1,681 in Gresham, OR and $934 in San Jose. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Gresham, OR pays 300% 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: $83.0 in Gresham, OR vs $60.0 in San Jose. Groceries flip the comparison at $351 vs $399, with Gresham, OR cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Gresham, OR

🇨🇷 San Jose

🕒 Local time

20:11 8:11 PM

21:11 9:11 PM

1 h ahead of Gresham, OR

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

114,247

342,188 Capital

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.892 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 October 11, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.892 EUR).

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 11, 2026: 1 USD = 451 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD). 1 EUR = 505 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR).

CRC to USD in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Gresham, OR San Jose 5,380 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Gresham, OR
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

Gresham, OR vs San Jose: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Gresham, OR and San Jose differ by about 39% in total monthly costs ($2,712 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 300% higher in Gresham, OR, 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: $1,681 in Gresham, OR versus $934 in San Jose. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $1,350 in Gresham, OR versus $971 in San Jose. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in San Jose – a meal for two runs $60.0 versus $83.0 in Gresham, OR. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,949 in San Jose versus $2,712 in Gresham, OR, a $2,500 budget is realistic in San Jose but tight or insufficient in Gresham, OR. 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 39% less than in Gresham, OR. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.