Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Hearst and San Jose

For one person, living is cheaper in San Jose: $2,107 a month against $2,266 in Hearst, rent and utilities included – about $1,900 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Hearst outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

108

Cost of Living Index in Hearst
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Hearst Living Index
101

Cost of Living Index in San Jose
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San Jose Living Index

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Hearst

🇨🇦 Canada

$2,266

/mo nomad

San Jose

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$2,107

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,266 in Hearst versus $2,107 in San Jose.

Hearst $2,266
San Jose $2,107

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,257 in Hearst versus $3,081 in San Jose.

Hearst $3,257
San Jose $3,081

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,248 in Hearst versus $4,054 in San Jose.

Hearst $4,248
San Jose $4,054

Living in Hearst is roughly 8% 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: Hearst 68% above, San Jose 56% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$18.11 CA$25.38

$12.37 ₡5,563

46.40%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$63.8 CA$89.5

$62.4 ₡28.0K

2.32%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.50 CA$14.72

$11.71 ₡5,264

-10.33%

Cappuccino

$3.69 CA$5.17

$4.54 ₡2,040

-18.72%

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

$2.07 CA$2.90

$2.75 ₡1,238

-24.73%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.63 CA$2.29

$1.86 ₡837

-12.37%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.11 CA$7.16

$3.35 ₡1,505

52.54%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.69 CA$7.97

$4.32 ₡1,944

31.71%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.05 CA$2.87

$2.36 ₡1,061

-13.14%

White Bread (500g)

$2.62 CA$3.67

$3.07 ₡1,379

-14.66%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.50 CA$4.91

$2.51 ₡1,128

39.44%

Eggs

$3.53 CA$4.95

$3.53 ₡1,585

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.31 CA$14.45

$10.54 ₡4,738

-2.18%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.37 CA$15.94

$10.57 ₡4,754

7.57%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.66 CA$20.55

$13.92 ₡6,261

5.32%

Apples (1kg)

$3.93 CA$5.51

$5.20 ₡2,338

-24.42%

Banana (1kg)

$1.30 CA$1.83

$1.65 ₡740

-21.21%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.71 CA$5.20

$4.89 ₡2,198

-24.13%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.78 CA$5.30

$3.84 ₡1,728

-1.56%

Potato (1kg)

$2.34 CA$3.29

$3.91 ₡1,757

-40.15%

Onion (1kg)

$2.18 CA$3.06

$3.76 ₡1,692

-42.02%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.44 CA$3.42

$1.12 ₡504

117.86%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.60 CA$2.24

$3.22 ₡1,447

-50.31%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$14.54 CA$20.38

$6.02 ₡2,706

141.53%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.72 CA$17.83

$19.84 ₡8,919

-35.89%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.68 CA$3.75

$2.81 ₡1,264

-4.63%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.05 CA$4.28

$3.65 ₡1,643

-16.44%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.35 CA$3.29

$1.08 ₡487

117.59%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$63.0 CA$88.3

$65.2 ₡29.3K

-3.46%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.94 CA$4.12

$2.26 ₡1,018

30.09%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.47 CA$2.06

$1.78 ₡799

-17.42%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$23.99 CA$33.62

$7.90 ₡3,551

203.67%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.21 CA$1.70

$1.50 ₡673

-19.33%

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

$27.4K CA$38.4K

$33.5K ₡15.1M

-18.15%

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

$21.7K CA$30.4K

$42.3K ₡19.0M

-48.65%

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

$139 CA$194

$93.2 ₡41.9K

48.75%

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

$39.53 CA$55.4

$36.13 ₡16.2K

9.41%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$54.8 CA$76.8

$60.6 ₡27.2K

-9.54%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$38.30 CA$53.7

$68.9 ₡31.0K

-44.44%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.53 CA$25.97

$24.94 ₡11.2K

-25.70%

Cinema Ticket

$10.78 CA$15.11

$7.67 ₡3,449

40.55%

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

$639 CA$895

$972 ₡436.9K

-34.27%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$13.4K CA$18.8K

$18.9K ₡8.5M

-28.81%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$54.3 CA$76.1

$70.6 ₡31.8K

-23.11%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.41 CA$53.8

$56.7 ₡25.5K

-32.23%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$86.7 CA$122

$129 ₡57.8K

-32.58%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$103 CA$144

$131 ₡58.8K

-21.54%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,267 CA$1,776

$1,170 ₡525.9K

8.31%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,138 CA$1,595

$943 ₡424.1K

20.62%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,968 CA$2,759

$1,984 ₡892.0K

-0.80%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,706 CA$2,392

$1,400 ₡629.5K

21.87%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,305 CA$6,034

$2,681 ₡1.2M

60.55%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,533 CA$4,953

$2,037 ₡915.8K

73.48%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,177 CA$4,453

$987 ₡443.6K

221.99%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.68

8.62

-45.71%

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

Last update for Hearst: 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

Hearst

$1.1K 50.2%

San Jose

$943 44.8% 17.1% $195

Groceries & Markets

Hearst

$353 15.6%

San Jose

$403 19.1% 14% $50

Eating Out

Hearst

$272 12%

San Jose

$232 11% 14.7% $40

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Hearst

$233 10.3%

San Jose

$190 9% 18.5% $43

Clothing & Footwear

Hearst

$127 5.6%

San Jose

$174 8.3% 37.1% $47

Getting Around

Hearst

$83 3.7%

San Jose

$81 3.8% 2.3% $1.9

Sport & Entertainment

Hearst

$60 2.6%

San Jose

$84 4% 40.8% $24

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,267 in Hearst and $1,170 in San Jose. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Hearst pays about 3.2 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $64 in Hearst vs $62 in San Jose. Groceries flip the comparison at $353 vs $403, with Hearst cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇨🇦 Hearst

🇨🇷 San Jose

🕒 Local time

02:11 2:11 AM

01:11 1:11 AM

1 h behind Hearst

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

5,000

342,188 Capital

💱 Currency

Canadian Dollar CAD $

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

1 CAD = 0.713 USD

1 CAD = 0.635 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, USD, EUR to CAD – Canadian Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇦 Canadian Dollar ($)

Canadian Dollar exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 1.4 CAD (1 CAD = 0.713 USD). 1 EUR = 1.57 CAD (1 CAD = 0.635 EUR).

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 450 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD). 1 EUR = 505 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR).

USD to CAD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Hearst San Jose 4,420 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Hearst
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

Hearst vs San Jose: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,266 in Hearst and $2,107 in San Jose, so San Jose is about 7% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Hearst is about 3.2 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: $1,267 in Hearst versus $1,170 in San Jose. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $639 in Hearst versus $972 in San Jose. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Shoppers in Hearst pay roughly 12% less for everyday groceries. It’s an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

Either city works on $2,500 a month, though San Jose gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

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, Hearst on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.