Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Manchester, NH and San Jose

For one person, living is cheaper in San Jose: $2,107 a month against $3,011 in Manchester, NH, rent and utilities included – about $10,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

143

Cost of Living Index in Manchester, NH
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Manchester, NH Living Index
101

Cost of Living Index in San Jose
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San Jose Living Index

Jump to prices

Manchester, NH

🇺🇸 United States

$3,011

/mo nomad

San Jose

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$2,107

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $3,011 in Manchester, NH versus $2,107 in San Jose.

Manchester, NH $3,011
San Jose $2,107

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,285 in Manchester, NH versus $3,081 in San Jose.

Manchester, NH $4,285
San Jose $3,081

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,558 in Manchester, NH versus $4,054 in San Jose.

Manchester, NH $5,558
San Jose $4,054

Living in Manchester, NH is roughly 43% 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: Manchester, NH 123% above, San Jose 56% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$26.53 $26.53

$12.37 ₡5,563

114.47%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$78.5 $78.5

$62.4 ₡28.0K

25.76%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.02 $11.02

$11.71 ₡5,264

-5.89%

Cappuccino

$5.30 $5.30

$4.54 ₡2,040

16.74%

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

$2.39 $2.39

$2.75 ₡1,238

-13.09%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.01 $2.01

$1.86 ₡837

8.06%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.10 $6.10

$3.35 ₡1,505

82.09%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.18 $7.18

$4.32 ₡1,944

66.20%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.06 $1.06

$2.36 ₡1,061

-55.08%

White Bread (500g)

$2.96 $2.96

$3.07 ₡1,379

-3.58%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.87 $4.87

$2.51 ₡1,128

94.02%

Eggs

$4.78 $4.78

$3.53 ₡1,585

35.41%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.90 $9.90

$10.54 ₡4,738

-6.07%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.97 $10.97

$10.57 ₡4,754

3.78%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.80 $19.80

$13.92 ₡6,261

42.24%

Apples (1kg)

$6.03 $6.03

$5.20 ₡2,338

15.96%

Banana (1kg)

$2.33 $2.33

$1.65 ₡740

41.21%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.34 $4.34

$4.89 ₡2,198

-11.25%

Tomato (1kg)

$6.24 $6.24

$3.84 ₡1,728

62.50%

Potato (1kg)

$2.41 $2.41

$3.91 ₡1,757

-38.36%

Onion (1kg)

$3.19 $3.19

$3.76 ₡1,692

-15.16%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.11 $2.11

$1.12 ₡504

88.39%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.30 $2.30

$3.22 ₡1,447

-28.57%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$9.76 $9.76

$6.02 ₡2,706

62.13%

Wine (Bottle)

$15.28 $15.28

$19.84 ₡8,919

-22.98%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.95 $1.95

$2.81 ₡1,264

-30.60%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.08 $5.08

$3.65 ₡1,643

39.18%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.05 $2.05

$1.08 ₡487

89.81%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$60.1 $60.1

$65.2 ₡29.3K

-7.83%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.08 $4.08

$2.26 ₡1,018

80.53%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.81 $1.81

$1.78 ₡799

1.69%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$29.55 $29.55

$7.90 ₡3,551

274.05%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.94 $0.94

$1.50 ₡673

-37.33%

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

$33.7K $33.7K

$33.5K ₡15.1M

0.70%

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

$25.0K $25.0K

$42.3K ₡19.0M

-40.94%

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

$229 $229

$93.2 ₡41.9K

145.95%

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

$61.4 $61.4

$36.13 ₡16.2K

69.91%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$69.0 $69.0

$60.6 ₡27.2K

13.91%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$40.55 $40.55

$68.9 ₡31.0K

-41.17%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$40.39 $40.39

$24.94 ₡11.2K

61.95%

Cinema Ticket

$11.38 $11.38

$7.67 ₡3,449

48.37%

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

$1,548 $1,548

$972 ₡436.9K

59.26%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$10.2K $10.2K

$18.9K ₡8.5M

-45.80%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$44.28 $44.28

$70.6 ₡31.8K

-37.30%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.78 $44.78

$56.7 ₡25.5K

-21.00%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$91.4 $91.4

$129 ₡57.8K

-28.95%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$113 $113

$131 ₡58.8K

-13.51%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,820 $1,820

$1,170 ₡525.9K

55.64%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,588 $1,588

$943 ₡424.1K

68.34%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,863 $2,863

$1,984 ₡892.0K

44.30%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,394 $2,394

$1,400 ₡629.5K

71.02%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,157 $3,157

$2,681 ₡1.2M

17.74%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,912 $2,912

$2,037 ₡915.8K

42.96%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,181 $4,181

$987 ₡443.6K

323.77%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.21

8.62

-27.96%

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

Last update for Manchester, NH: November 1, 2026

Last update for San Jose: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Manchester, NH

$1.6K 52.7%

San Jose

$943 44.8% 40.6% $645

Groceries & Markets

Manchester, NH

$416 13.8%

San Jose

$403 19.1% 3.1% $13

Eating Out

Manchester, NH

$371 12.3%

San Jose

$232 11% 37.4% $139

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Manchester, NH

$360 11.9%

San Jose

$190 9% 47.2% $170

Clothing & Footwear

Manchester, NH

$132 4.4%

San Jose

$174 8.3% 31.7% $42

Getting Around

Manchester, NH

$81 2.7%

San Jose

$81 3.8% 0.9% $0.7

Sport & Entertainment

Manchester, NH

$63 2.1%

San Jose

$84 4% 33.1% $21

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,820 in Manchester, NH and $1,170 in San Jose. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Manchester, NH pays about 4.2 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $78 in Manchester, NH vs $62 in San Jose for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $416 vs $403 per month, with San Jose cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Manchester, NH

🇨🇷 San Jose

🕒 Local time

17:00 5:00 PM

16:00 4:00 PM

1 h behind Manchester, NH

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

109,497

342,188 Capital

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.895 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.99 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 6, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.895 EUR).

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 450 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD). 1 EUR = 502 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.99 EUR).

CRC to USD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Manchester, NH San Jose 3,880 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

Manchester, NH
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

Manchester, NH vs San Jose: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

San Jose is about 30% cheaper overall, especially in eating out, utilities, and groceries. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay in Manchester, NH is about 4.2 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: $1,820 in Manchester, NH versus $1,170 in San Jose. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $1,548 in Manchester, NH 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 3% higher in Manchester, NH. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $2,107 in San Jose versus $3,011 in Manchester, NH, a $2,500 budget is realistic in San Jose but tight or insufficient in Manchester, NH. 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.

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