Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Manchester, TN and San Jose

For one person, living is cheaper in San Jose: $1,924 a month against $2,613 in Manchester, TN, rent and utilities included – about $8,300 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Manchester, TN outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

127

Cost of Living Index in Manchester, TN
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Manchester, TN Living Index
93

Cost of Living Index in San Jose
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San Jose Living Index

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Manchester, TN

🇺🇸 United States

$2,613

/mo nomad

San Jose

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,924

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,613 in Manchester, TN versus $1,924 in San Jose.

Manchester, TN $2,613
San Jose $1,924

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,337 in Manchester, TN versus $2,926 in San Jose.

Manchester, TN $3,337
San Jose $2,926

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,060 in Manchester, TN versus $3,929 in San Jose.

Manchester, TN $4,060
San Jose $3,929

Living in Manchester, TN is roughly 36% more expensive than in San Jose, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Manchester, TN 93% above, San Jose 42% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$14.17 $14.17

$12.29 ₡5,513

15.30%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$52.1 $52.1

$62.3 ₡27.9K

-16.32%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.08 $10.08

$11.53 ₡5,171

-12.58%

Cappuccino

$4.73 $4.73

$4.35 ₡1,953

8.74%

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

$2.51 $2.51

$2.64 ₡1,183

-4.92%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.10 $2.10

$1.86 ₡836

12.90%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.70 $5.70

$3.32 ₡1,490

71.69%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.33 $5.33

$4.52 ₡2,026

17.92%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.87 $0.87

$2.39 ₡1,073

-63.60%

White Bread (500g)

$4.02 $4.02

$3.08 ₡1,381

30.52%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.45 $4.45

$2.50 ₡1,119

78.00%

Eggs

$2.98 $2.98

$3.48 ₡1,562

-14.37%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.50 $11.50

$10.74 ₡4,815

7.08%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.06 $9.06

$10.32 ₡4,629

-12.21%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.45 $16.45

$14.10 ₡6,325

16.67%

Apples (1kg)

$4.37 $4.37

$5.03 ₡2,256

-13.12%

Banana (1kg)

$2.11 $2.11

$1.59 ₡714

32.70%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.01 $4.01

$4.84 ₡2,171

-17.15%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.46 $4.46

$3.96 ₡1,776

12.63%

Potato (1kg)

$3.70 $3.70

$3.76 ₡1,684

-1.60%

Onion (1kg)

$3.71 $3.71

$3.73 ₡1,674

-0.54%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.37 $2.37

$1.08 ₡485

119.44%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.82 $2.82

$3.25 ₡1,456

-13.23%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$7.12 $7.12

$5.86 ₡2,627

21.50%

Wine (Bottle)

$15.14 $15.14

$20.28 ₡9,095

-25.35%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.75 $1.75

$2.90 ₡1,300

-39.66%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.05 $3.05

$3.73 ₡1,673

-18.23%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.78 $1.78

$1.08 ₡486

64.81%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$65.5 ₡29.4K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.98 $2.98

$2.50 ₡1,123

19.20%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.44 $2.44

$1.63 ₡732

49.69%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$40.25 $40.25

$8.71 ₡3,904

362.11%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.89 $0.89

$1.58 ₡709

-43.67%

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

$32.4K $32.4K

$33.6K ₡15.1M

-3.48%

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

$26.7K $26.7K

$41.7K ₡18.7M

-35.92%

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

$254 $254

$93.7 ₡42.0K

171.65%

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

$54.7 $54.7

$35.42 ₡15.9K

54.52%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$90.4 $90.4

$60.0 ₡26.9K

50.68%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$41.28 $41.28

$72.6 ₡32.6K

-43.13%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$25.83 ₡11.6K

Cinema Ticket

$16.72 $16.72

$7.74 ₡3,471

116.02%

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

$1,294 $1,294

$1,005 ₡450.9K

28.73%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$15.6K $15.6K

$16.9K ₡7.6M

-7.71%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$77.8 $77.8

$73.1 ₡32.8K

6.43%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.66 $44.66

$55.4 ₡24.9K

-19.44%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$128 $128

$128 ₡57.5K

0.12%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$137 $137

$130 ₡58.5K

4.95%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,050 $1,050

$932 ₡418.0K

12.69%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,296 $1,296

$760 ₡340.8K

70.60%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,099 $2,099

$1,922 ₡862.0K

9.20%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,367 $1,367

$1,276 ₡572.1K

7.13%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,073 $3,073

$2,301 ₡1.0M

33.53%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,066 $2,066

$1,833 ₡821.9K

12.72%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,029 ₡461.3K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.84

8.62

-20.65%

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

Last update for Manchester, TN: 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

Manchester, TN

$1.3K 49.6%

San Jose

$760 39.5% 41.4% $537

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Manchester, TN

$399 15.3%

San Jose

$189 9.8% 52.7% $210

Groceries & Markets

Manchester, TN

$387 14.8%

San Jose

$403 21% 4.1% $16

Eating Out

Manchester, TN

$258 9.9%

San Jose

$229 11.9% 11.3% $29

Clothing & Footwear

Manchester, TN

$174 6.7%

San Jose

$174 9.1% 0.1% $0.2

Sport & Entertainment

Manchester, TN

$75 2.9%

San Jose

$88 4.6% 17.9% $13

Getting Around

Manchester, TN

$22 * 0.9%

San Jose

$80 4.2% 261% $58

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 $1,050 in Manchester, TN and $932 in San Jose. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $52.0 in Manchester, TN vs $62.0 in San Jose for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $387 vs $403 per month, with Manchester, TN cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Manchester, TN

🇨🇷 San Jose

🕒 Local time

13:53 1:53 PM

12:53 12:53 PM

1 h behind Manchester, TN

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

109,497

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 20, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.89 EUR).

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 20, 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

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Manchester, TN San Jose 2,850 km ≈ 4 h nonstop flight

From you

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

San Jose is cheaper overall, especially in eating out, clothing, and utilities. The 36% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You'd need roughly $3,919 in Manchester, TN and $2,886 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: $1,050 in Manchester, TN versus $932 in San Jose. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Shoppers in Manchester, TN pay roughly 4% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

All in, you'll spend $2,613 per month in Manchester, TN versus $1,924 in San Jose – a 36% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,924 in San Jose versus $2,613 in Manchester, TN, a $2,500 budget is realistic in San Jose but tight or insufficient in Manchester, TN. The gap between the two cities makes San Jose the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, San Jose is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Manchester, TN, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Expats usually find San Jose gentler on the wallet – expenses run 36% less than in Manchester, TN. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.