Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Isla Mujeres and San Jose

For one person, living is cheaper in Isla Mujeres: $1,087 a month against $1,949 in San Jose, rent and utilities included – about $10,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

54

Cost of Living Index in Isla Mujeres
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Isla Mujeres Living Index
93

Cost of Living Index in San Jose
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San Jose Living Index

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Isla Mujeres

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,087

/mo nomad

San Jose

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,949

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,087 in Isla Mujeres versus $1,949 in San Jose.

Isla Mujeres $1,087
San Jose $1,949

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,747 in Isla Mujeres versus $2,903 in San Jose.

Isla Mujeres $1,747
San Jose $2,903

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,407 in Isla Mujeres versus $3,857 in San Jose.

Isla Mujeres $2,407
San Jose $3,857

Living in Isla Mujeres costs roughly 44% less than in San Jose, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Isla Mujeres is 19% below, San Jose is 45% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.60 MX$193

$12.22 ₡5,499

-13.26%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$39.12 MX$714

$60.1 ₡27.0K

-34.94%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.06 MX$147

$11.77 ₡5,293

-31.52%

Cappuccino

$3.38 MX$61.8

$4.30 ₡1,934

-21.40%

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

$1.24 MX$22.59

$2.72 ₡1,223

-54.41%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.96 MX$17.61

$1.84 ₡828

-47.83%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.24 MX$40.87

$3.28 ₡1,477

-31.71%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.80 MX$69.3

$4.36 ₡1,962

-12.84%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.43 MX$26.12

$2.38 ₡1,072

-39.92%

White Bread (500g)

$2.64 MX$48.25

$3.12 ₡1,405

-15.38%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.57 MX$28.74

$2.41 ₡1,084

-34.85%

Eggs

$2.38 MX$43.51

$3.47 ₡1,561

-31.41%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.23 MX$150

$10.57 ₡4,757

-22.14%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.00 MX$146

$10.56 ₡4,748

-24.24%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.78 MX$197

$13.75 ₡6,183

-21.60%

Apples (1kg)

$2.72 MX$49.58

$5.04 ₡2,269

-46.03%

Banana (1kg)

$1.40 MX$25.58

$1.61 ₡726

-13.04%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.78 MX$32.53

$4.59 ₡2,064

-61.22%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.65 MX$30.19

$3.84 ₡1,727

-57.03%

Potato (1kg)

$1.84 MX$33.66

$3.77 ₡1,697

-51.19%

Onion (1kg)

$1.93 MX$35.22

$3.76 ₡1,689

-48.67%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.26 MX$22.92

$1.12 ₡505

12.50%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.97 MX$17.72

$3.20 ₡1,438

-69.69%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.27 MX$78.0

$5.84 ₡2,627

-26.88%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.66 MX$195

$19.73 ₡8,878

-45.97%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.55 MX$28.30

$2.75 ₡1,238

-43.64%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.74 MX$50.0

$3.66 ₡1,646

-25.14%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.66 MX$11.98

$1.12 ₡502

-41.07%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$65.1 ₡29.3K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.65 MX$48.47

$2.46 ₡1,108

7.72%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.52 MX$27.81

$1.54 ₡691

-1.30%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.37 MX$153

$8.46 ₡3,807

-1.06%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.33 MX$24.25

$1.55 ₡698

-14.19%

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

$21.2K MX$387.4K

$21.7K ₡9.8M

-2.23%

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

$22.8K MX$416.8K

$34.9K ₡15.7M

-34.54%

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

$56.0 MX$1,023

$94.7 ₡42.6K

-40.82%

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

$22.35 MX$408

$35.11 ₡15.8K

-36.34%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.89 MX$509

$58.6 ₡26.3K

-52.37%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$36.84 MX$673

$72.2 ₡32.5K

-48.95%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.02 MX$292

$25.19 ₡11.3K

-36.40%

Cinema Ticket

$4.68 MX$85.4

$7.83 ₡3,524

-40.23%

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

$206 MX$3,758

$971 ₡437.0K

-78.81%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,587 MX$65.5K

$17.0K ₡7.6M

-78.90%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.9 MX$984

$71.6 ₡32.2K

-24.71%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.65 MX$724

$54.9 ₡24.7K

-27.71%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$89.3 MX$1,630

$129 ₡58.0K

-30.81%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$77.9 MX$1,423

$133 ₡59.9K

-41.48%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$518 MX$9,466

$934 ₡420.0K

-44.47%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$390 MX$7,123

$770 ₡346.5K

-49.35%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$923 MX$16.9K

$1,945 ₡874.9K

-52.54%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$762 MX$13.9K

$1,316 ₡592.2K

-42.14%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,785 MX$32.6K

$2,277 ₡1.0M

-21.60%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,153 MX$21.1K

$1,795 ₡807.4K

-35.76%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,006 ₡452.5K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.48

8.62

33.18%

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

Last update for Isla Mujeres: October 6, 2026

Last update for San Jose: October 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Isla Mujeres

$390 35.4%

San Jose

$770 39.9% 97.4% $380

Groceries & Markets

Isla Mujeres

$252 22.8%

San Jose

$399 20.7% 58.6% $147

Eating Out

Isla Mujeres

$177 16.1%

San Jose

$228 11.8% 28.8% $51

Clothing & Footwear

Isla Mujeres

$117 10.7%

San Jose

$175 9.1% 49.1% $58

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Isla Mujeres

$106 9.7%

San Jose

$188 9.8% 77.2% $82

Sport & Entertainment

Isla Mujeres

$46 4.2%

San Jose

$88 4.6% 90.1% $42

Getting Around

Isla Mujeres

$13 * 1.2%

San Jose

$80 4.1% 518% $67

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 $518 in Isla Mujeres and $934 in San Jose. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $39.00 in Isla Mujeres vs $60.0 in San Jose for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $252 vs $399 per month, with Isla Mujeres cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Isla Mujeres

🇨🇷 San Jose

🕒 Local time

03:42 3:42 AM

02:42 2:42 AM

1 h behind Isla Mujeres

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

13,174

342,188 Capital

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.48 USD

100 MXN = 4.89 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 13, 2026: 1 USD = 18.26 MXN (100 MXN = 5.48 USD). 1 EUR = 20.46 MXN (100 MXN = 4.89 EUR).

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 13, 2026: 1 USD = 450 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD). 1 EUR = 504 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Isla Mujeres San Jose 1,290 km ≈ 2 h nonstop flight

From you

Isla Mujeres
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

Isla Mujeres vs San Jose: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Isla Mujeres and San Jose differ by about 79% in total monthly costs ($1,087 vs $1,949 including rent). Isla Mujeres is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You'd need roughly $1,631 in Isla Mujeres and $2,924 in San Jose to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $518 in Isla Mujeres versus $934 in San Jose. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 59% higher in San Jose. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $1,087 per month in Isla Mujeres versus $1,949 in San Jose – a 79% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,087 in Isla Mujeres versus $1,949 in San Jose, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Isla Mujeres but tight or insufficient in San Jose. The gap between the two cities makes Isla Mujeres 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, Isla Mujeres 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 Isla Mujeres gentler on the wallet – expenses run 79% less than in San Jose. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.