Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Milton, DE and San Jose

For one person, living is cheaper in San Jose: $2,107 a month against $2,626 in Milton, DE, rent and utilities included – about $6,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

125

Cost of Living Index in Milton, DE
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Milton, DE Living Index
101

Cost of Living Index in San Jose
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San Jose Living Index

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Milton, DE

🇺🇸 United States

$2,626

/mo nomad

San Jose

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$2,107

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,626 in Milton, DE versus $2,107 in San Jose.

Milton, DE $2,626
San Jose $2,107

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,823 in Milton, DE versus $3,081 in San Jose.

Milton, DE $3,823
San Jose $3,081

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,021 in Milton, DE versus $4,054 in San Jose.

Milton, DE $5,021
San Jose $4,054

Living in Milton, DE is roughly 25% 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: Milton, DE 94% above, San Jose 56% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$19.99 $19.99

$12.37 ₡5,563

61.60%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.5 $67.5

$62.4 ₡28.0K

8.24%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.35 $12.35

$11.71 ₡5,264

5.47%

Cappuccino

$4.68 $4.68

$4.54 ₡2,040

3.08%

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

$2.67 $2.67

$2.75 ₡1,238

-2.91%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.25 $2.25

$1.86 ₡837

20.97%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.11 $5.11

$3.35 ₡1,505

52.54%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.21 $8.21

$4.32 ₡1,944

90.05%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.04 $1.04

$2.36 ₡1,061

-55.93%

White Bread (500g)

$3.64 $3.64

$3.07 ₡1,379

18.57%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.36 $4.36

$2.51 ₡1,128

73.71%

Eggs

$4.25 $4.25

$3.53 ₡1,585

20.40%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.23 $12.23

$10.54 ₡4,738

16.03%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.83 $11.83

$10.57 ₡4,754

11.92%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.92 $16.92

$13.92 ₡6,261

21.55%

Apples (1kg)

$4.96 $4.96

$5.20 ₡2,338

-4.62%

Banana (1kg)

$1.67 $1.67

$1.65 ₡740

1.21%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.42 $4.42

$4.89 ₡2,198

-9.61%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.78 $4.78

$3.84 ₡1,728

24.48%

Potato (1kg)

$2.88 $2.88

$3.91 ₡1,757

-26.34%

Onion (1kg)

$2.90 $2.90

$3.76 ₡1,692

-22.87%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.19 $2.19

$1.12 ₡504

95.54%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.24 $2.24

$3.22 ₡1,447

-30.43%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$9.99 $9.99

$6.02 ₡2,706

65.95%

Wine (Bottle)

$15.23 $15.23

$19.84 ₡8,919

-23.24%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.99 $1.99

$2.81 ₡1,264

-29.18%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.49 $3.49

$3.65 ₡1,643

-4.38%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.95 $1.95

$1.08 ₡487

80.56%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$59.4 $59.4

$65.2 ₡29.3K

-8.98%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.53 $3.53

$2.26 ₡1,018

56.19%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.69 $1.69

$1.78 ₡799

-5.06%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$29.43 $29.43

$7.90 ₡3,551

272.53%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.93 $0.93

$1.50 ₡673

-38.00%

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

$27.5K $27.5K

$33.5K ₡15.1M

-17.74%

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

$26.2K $26.2K

$42.3K ₡19.0M

-38.11%

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

$202 $202

$93.2 ₡41.9K

116.66%

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

$58.5 $58.5

$36.13 ₡16.2K

62.00%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$69.9 $69.9

$60.6 ₡27.2K

15.35%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$40.78 $40.78

$68.9 ₡31.0K

-40.84%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$40.76 $40.76

$24.94 ₡11.2K

63.43%

Cinema Ticket

$14.26 $14.26

$7.67 ₡3,449

85.92%

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

$1,395 $1,395

$972 ₡436.9K

43.50%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$20.4K $20.4K

$18.9K ₡8.5M

7.99%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$52.4 $52.4

$70.6 ₡31.8K

-25.87%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.21 $41.21

$56.7 ₡25.5K

-27.29%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$87.1 $87.1

$129 ₡57.8K

-32.27%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$115 $115

$131 ₡58.8K

-12.08%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,559 $1,559

$1,170 ₡525.9K

33.29%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,297 $1,297

$943 ₡424.1K

37.54%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,522 $2,522

$1,984 ₡892.0K

27.13%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,100 $2,100

$1,400 ₡629.5K

49.96%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,867 $2,867

$2,681 ₡1.2M

6.94%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,361 $2,361

$2,037 ₡915.8K

15.92%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,948 $3,948

$987 ₡443.6K

300.17%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.59

8.62

-23.55%

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

Last update for Milton, DE: 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

Milton, DE

$1.3K 49.4%

San Jose

$943 44.8% 27.3% $354

Groceries & Markets

Milton, DE

$402 15.3%

San Jose

$403 19.1% 0.2% $0.9

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Milton, DE

$330 12.6%

San Jose

$190 9% 42.5% $140

Eating Out

Milton, DE

$315 12%

San Jose

$232 11% 26.2% $82

Clothing & Footwear

Milton, DE

$133 5.1%

San Jose

$174 8.3% 30.8% $41

Getting Around

Milton, DE

$79 3%

San Jose

$81 3.8% 2% $1.6

Sport & Entertainment

Milton, DE

$69 2.6%

San Jose

$84 4% 21.6% $15

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,559 in Milton, DE and $1,170 in San Jose. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Milton, DE pays about 4 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $68 in Milton, DE vs $62 in San Jose. Groceries flip the comparison at $402 vs $403, with Milton, DE cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Milton, DE

🇨🇷 San Jose

🕒 Local time

12:13 12:13 PM

11:13 11:13 AM

1 h behind Milton, DE

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

25,902

342,188 Capital

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.89 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.22 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 November 6, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.89 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).

CRC to USD in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Milton, DE San Jose 3,320 km ≈ 4 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Milton, DE
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

Milton, DE vs San Jose: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

San Jose is about 20% cheaper overall, especially in eating out and utilities. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay in Milton, DE is about 4 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: $1,559 in Milton, DE versus $1,170 in San Jose. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Milton, DE runs roughly 9% less than in San Jose. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

All in, you’ll spend $2,626 per month in Milton, DE versus $2,107 in San Jose – San Jose is about 20% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

At $2,107 in San Jose versus $2,626 in Milton, DE, a $2,500 budget is realistic in San Jose but tight or insufficient in Milton, DE. 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, Milton, DE on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.