Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Long Beach, CA and San Jose

For one person, living is cheaper in San Jose: $1,924 a month against $3,185 in Long Beach, CA, rent and utilities included – about $15,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

155

Cost of Living Index in Long Beach, CA
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Long Beach, CA Living Index
93

Cost of Living Index in San Jose
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San Jose Living Index

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Long Beach, CA

🇺🇸 United States

$3,185

/mo nomad

San Jose

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,924

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $3,185 in Long Beach, CA versus $1,924 in San Jose.

Long Beach, CA $3,185
San Jose $1,924

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,857 in Long Beach, CA versus $2,926 in San Jose.

Long Beach, CA $4,857
San Jose $2,926

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $6,529 in Long Beach, CA versus $3,929 in San Jose.

Long Beach, CA $6,529
San Jose $3,929

Living in Long Beach, CA is roughly 66% 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: Long Beach, CA 135% above, San Jose 42% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$19.67 $19.67

$12.29 ₡5,513

60.05%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$78.7 $78.7

$62.3 ₡27.9K

26.37%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$14.48 $14.48

$11.53 ₡5,171

25.59%

Cappuccino

$6.17 $6.17

$4.35 ₡1,953

41.84%

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

$3.27 $3.27

$2.64 ₡1,183

23.86%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.48 $2.48

$1.86 ₡836

33.33%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.46 $7.46

$3.32 ₡1,490

124.70%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$9.70 $9.70

$4.52 ₡2,026

114.60%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.05 $1.05

$2.39 ₡1,073

-56.07%

White Bread (500g)

$4.13 $4.13

$3.08 ₡1,381

34.09%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.65 $4.65

$2.50 ₡1,119

86.00%

Eggs

$4.63 $4.63

$3.48 ₡1,562

33.05%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.11 $13.11

$10.74 ₡4,815

22.07%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$14.28 $14.28

$10.32 ₡4,629

38.37%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.21 $15.21

$14.10 ₡6,325

7.87%

Apples (1kg)

$4.74 $4.74

$5.03 ₡2,256

-5.77%

Banana (1kg)

$1.67 $1.67

$1.59 ₡714

5.03%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.80 $4.80

$4.84 ₡2,171

-0.83%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.84 $4.84

$3.96 ₡1,776

22.22%

Potato (1kg)

$3.46 $3.46

$3.76 ₡1,684

-7.98%

Onion (1kg)

$2.24 $2.24

$3.73 ₡1,674

-39.95%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.04 $2.04

$1.08 ₡485

88.89%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.83 $1.83

$3.25 ₡1,456

-43.69%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$11.56 $11.56

$5.86 ₡2,627

97.27%

Wine (Bottle)

$15.06 $15.06

$20.28 ₡9,095

-25.74%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.93 $1.93

$2.90 ₡1,300

-33.45%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.29 $3.29

$3.73 ₡1,673

-11.80%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.76 $1.76

$1.08 ₡486

62.96%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$68.9 $68.9

$65.5 ₡29.4K

5.27%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.92 $2.92

$2.50 ₡1,123

16.80%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.08 $2.08

$1.63 ₡732

27.61%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$28.25 $28.25

$8.71 ₡3,904

224.34%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.54 $1.54

$1.58 ₡709

-2.53%

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

$28.5K $28.5K

$33.6K ₡15.1M

-15.13%

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

$26.0K $26.0K

$41.7K ₡18.7M

-37.68%

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

$169 $169

$93.7 ₡42.0K

80.13%

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

$66.3 $66.3

$35.42 ₡15.9K

87.13%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$60.3 $60.3

$60.0 ₡26.9K

0.58%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$39.49 $39.49

$72.6 ₡32.6K

-45.60%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$25.83 ₡11.6K

Cinema Ticket

$14.84 $14.84

$7.74 ₡3,471

91.73%

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

$1,912 $1,912

$1,005 ₡450.9K

90.21%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$36.2K $36.2K

$16.9K ₡7.6M

113.77%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$58.5 $58.5

$73.1 ₡32.8K

-19.95%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.11 $40.11

$55.4 ₡24.9K

-27.65%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$93.9 $93.9

$128 ₡57.5K

-26.78%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$142 $142

$130 ₡58.5K

9.07%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,057 $2,057

$932 ₡418.0K

120.66%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,813 $1,813

$760 ₡340.8K

138.52%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,672 $3,672

$1,922 ₡862.0K

91.05%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,462 $3,462

$1,276 ₡572.1K

171.40%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,440 $7,440

$2,301 ₡1.0M

223.33%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,677 $6,677

$1,833 ₡821.9K

264.38%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,419 $4,419

$1,029 ₡461.3K

329.64%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.39

8.62

-25.87%

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

Last update for Long Beach, CA: October 18, 2026

Last update for San Jose: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Long Beach, CA

$1.8K 56.9%

San Jose

$760 39.5% 58.1% $1.1K

Groceries & Markets

Long Beach, CA

$414 13%

San Jose

$403 21% 2.6% $11

Eating Out

Long Beach, CA

$355 11.1%

San Jose

$229 11.9% 35.5% $126

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Long Beach, CA

$295 9.3%

San Jose

$189 9.8% 36% $106

Clothing & Footwear

Long Beach, CA

$151 4.7%

San Jose

$174 9.1% 15.7% $24

Getting Around

Long Beach, CA

$89 2.8%

San Jose

$80 4.2% 9.9% $8.8

Sport & Entertainment

Long Beach, CA

$69 2.2%

San Jose

$88 4.6% 27.3% $19

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $2,057 in Long Beach, CA and $932 in San Jose. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Long Beach, CA pays 330% 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: $79.0 in Long Beach, CA vs $62.0 in San Jose for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $414 vs $403 per month, with San Jose cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Long Beach, CA

🇨🇷 San Jose

🕒 Local time

16:44 4:44 PM

17:44 5:44 PM

1 h ahead of Long Beach, CA

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

469,450

342,188 Capital

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.89 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.23 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 21, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.89 EUR).

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 21, 2026: 1 USD = 448 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD). 1 EUR = 504 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR).

CRC to USD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Long Beach, CA San Jose 4,370 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Long Beach, CA
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

Long Beach, CA vs San Jose: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Long Beach, CA and San Jose differ by about 66% in total monthly costs ($3,185 vs $1,924 including rent). San Jose is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 330% higher in Long Beach, CA, 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: $2,057 in Long Beach, CA versus $932 in San Jose. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in San Jose – a meal for two runs $62.0 versus $79.0 in Long Beach, CA. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you'll spend $3,185 per month in Long Beach, CA versus $1,924 in San Jose – a 66% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,924 in San Jose versus $3,185 in Long Beach, CA, a $2,500 budget is realistic in San Jose but tight or insufficient in Long Beach, CA. 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 66% less than in Long Beach, CA. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.