Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Hackensack, NJ and San Jose

For one person, living is cheaper in San Jose: $2,107 a month against $3,366 in Hackensack, NJ, rent and utilities included – about $15,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

161

Cost of Living Index in Hackensack, NJ
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Hackensack, NJ Living Index
101

Cost of Living Index in San Jose
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San Jose Living Index

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Hackensack, NJ

🇺🇸 United States

$3,366

/mo nomad

San Jose

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$2,107

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $3,366 in Hackensack, NJ versus $2,107 in San Jose.

Hackensack, NJ $3,366
San Jose $2,107

Estimated couple costs with rent: $5,165 in Hackensack, NJ versus $3,081 in San Jose.

Hackensack, NJ $5,165
San Jose $3,081

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $6,964 in Hackensack, NJ versus $4,054 in San Jose.

Hackensack, NJ $6,964
San Jose $4,054

Living in Hackensack, NJ is roughly 60% 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: Hackensack, NJ 149% above, San Jose 56% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$25.04 $25.04

$12.37 ₡5,572

102.43%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$99.4 $99.4

$62.4 ₡28.1K

59.38%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.92 $12.92

$11.71 ₡5,272

10.33%

Cappuccino

$5.45 $5.45

$4.54 ₡2,043

20.04%

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

$2.34 $2.34

$2.75 ₡1,239

-14.91%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.52 $1.52

$1.86 ₡839

-18.28%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.02 $8.02

$3.35 ₡1,508

139.40%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.06 $8.06

$4.32 ₡1,947

86.57%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.33 $1.33

$2.36 ₡1,062

-43.64%

White Bread (500g)

$4.32 $4.32

$3.07 ₡1,381

40.72%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$5.96 $5.96

$2.51 ₡1,129

137.45%

Eggs

$5.77 $5.77

$3.53 ₡1,588

63.46%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.67 $12.67

$10.54 ₡4,746

20.21%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.74 $7.74

$10.57 ₡4,761

-26.77%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.11 $17.11

$13.92 ₡6,270

22.92%

Apples (1kg)

$5.53 $5.53

$5.20 ₡2,341

6.35%

Banana (1kg)

$1.77 $1.77

$1.65 ₡742

7.27%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.16 $4.16

$4.89 ₡2,201

-14.93%

Tomato (1kg)

$5.41 $5.41

$3.84 ₡1,730

40.89%

Potato (1kg)

$3.10 $3.10

$3.91 ₡1,760

-20.72%

Onion (1kg)

$3.01 $3.01

$3.76 ₡1,694

-19.95%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.87 $2.87

$1.12 ₡505

156.25%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.91 $2.91

$3.22 ₡1,449

-9.63%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$11.86 $11.86

$6.02 ₡2,711

97.01%

Wine (Bottle)

$15.08 $15.08

$19.84 ₡8,932

-23.99%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.69 $1.69

$2.81 ₡1,266

-39.86%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.67 $3.67

$3.65 ₡1,646

0.55%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.54 $3.54

$1.08 ₡488

227.78%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$60.0 $60.0

$65.2 ₡29.4K

-7.96%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.06 $3.06

$2.26 ₡1,019

35.40%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.04 $2.04

$1.78 ₡800

14.61%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$23.98 $23.98

$7.90 ₡3,557

203.54%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.10 $1.10

$1.50 ₡674

-26.67%

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

$27.3K $27.3K

$33.5K ₡15.1M

-18.29%

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

$25.5K $25.5K

$42.3K ₡19.0M

-39.60%

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

$211 $211

$93.2 ₡42.0K

126.87%

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

$55.1 $55.1

$36.13 ₡16.3K

52.42%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$50.7 $50.7

$60.6 ₡27.3K

-16.41%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$45.79 $45.79

$68.9 ₡31.0K

-33.57%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.94 ₡11.2K

Cinema Ticket

$19.88 $19.88

$7.67 ₡3,454

159.19%

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

$1,415 $1,415

$972 ₡437.6K

45.65%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$20.2K $20.2K

$18.9K ₡8.5M

7.11%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.69 $43.69

$70.6 ₡31.8K

-38.13%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$56.5 $56.5

$56.7 ₡25.5K

-0.41%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$86.9 $86.9

$129 ₡57.9K

-32.42%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$101 $101

$131 ₡58.9K

-23.19%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,383 $2,383

$1,170 ₡526.7K

103.79%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,949 $1,949

$943 ₡424.7K

106.69%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$4,123 $4,123

$1,984 ₡893.3K

107.82%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,726 $3,726

$1,400 ₡630.5K

166.15%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,656 $3,656

$2,681 ₡1.2M

36.36%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,357 $3,357

$2,037 ₡917.1K

64.80%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$6,193 $6,193

$987 ₡444.3K

527.66%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.92

8.62

-19.72%

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

Last update for Hackensack, NJ: November 2, 2026

Last update for San Jose: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Hackensack, NJ

$1.9K 57.9%

San Jose

$943 44.8% 51.6% $1K

Groceries & Markets

Hackensack, NJ

$421 12.5%

San Jose

$403 19.1% 4.4% $18

Eating Out

Hackensack, NJ

$376 11.2%

San Jose

$232 11% 38.2% $144

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Hackensack, NJ

$317 9.4%

San Jose

$190 9% 40.1% $127

Clothing & Footwear

Hackensack, NJ

$129 3.8%

San Jose

$174 8.3% 34.5% $45

Getting Around

Hackensack, NJ

$87 2.6%

San Jose

$81 3.8% 7.7% $6.8

Sport & Entertainment

Hackensack, NJ

$86 2.5%

San Jose

$84 4% 1.5% $1.3

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $2,383 in Hackensack, NJ and $1,170 in San Jose. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Hackensack, NJ pays about 6.3 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $99 in Hackensack, NJ vs $62 in San Jose for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $421 vs $403 per month, with San Jose cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Hackensack, NJ

🇨🇷 San Jose

🕒 Local time

18:33 6:33 PM

17:33 5:33 PM

1 h behind Hackensack, NJ

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

44,756

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 5, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.891 EUR).

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of November 5, 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

Hackensack, NJ San Jose 3,580 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

Hackensack, NJ
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

Hackensack, NJ vs San Jose: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

San Jose wins on cost – living expenses run 37% lower than in Hackensack, NJ. 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 Hackensack, NJ is about 6.3 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: $2,383 in Hackensack, NJ versus $1,170 in San Jose. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $1,415 in Hackensack, NJ versus $972 in San Jose. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 5% higher in Hackensack, NJ. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $2,107 in San Jose versus $3,366 in Hackensack, NJ, a $2,500 budget is realistic in San Jose but tight or insufficient in Hackensack, NJ. The gap between the two cities makes San Jose the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but San Jose delivers better value at $2,107 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes San Jose hard to pass up.

It comes down to priorities – San Jose wins on affordability, Hackensack, NJ on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.