Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Milton and San Jose

For one person, living is cheaper in San Jose: $2,107 a month against $2,721 in Milton, rent and utilities included – about $7,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

131

Cost of Living Index in Milton
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Milton Living Index
101

Cost of Living Index in San Jose
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San Jose Living Index

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Milton

🇨🇦 Canada

$2,721

/mo nomad

San Jose

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$2,107

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,721 in Milton versus $2,107 in San Jose.

Milton $2,721
San Jose $2,107

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,855 in Milton versus $3,081 in San Jose.

Milton $3,855
San Jose $3,081

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,990 in Milton versus $4,054 in San Jose.

Milton $4,990
San Jose $4,054

Living in Milton is roughly 29% more expensive than in San Jose, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Milton 101% above, San Jose 56% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$14.12 CA$19.79

$12.37 ₡5,563

14.15%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$70.8 CA$99.2

$62.4 ₡28.0K

13.43%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.54 CA$11.96

$11.71 ₡5,264

-27.07%

Cappuccino

$3.63 CA$5.09

$4.54 ₡2,040

-20.04%

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

$2.96 CA$4.15

$2.75 ₡1,238

7.64%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.34 CA$3.27

$1.86 ₡837

25.81%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.81 CA$6.74

$3.35 ₡1,505

43.58%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.10 CA$8.55

$4.32 ₡1,944

41.20%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.01 CA$2.82

$2.36 ₡1,061

-14.83%

White Bread (500g)

$2.19 CA$3.07

$3.07 ₡1,379

-28.66%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.64 CA$3.70

$2.51 ₡1,128

5.18%

Eggs

$3.36 CA$4.71

$3.53 ₡1,585

-4.82%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.09 CA$12.74

$10.54 ₡4,738

-13.76%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$21.90 CA$30.69

$10.57 ₡4,754

107.19%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$23.29 CA$32.65

$13.92 ₡6,261

67.31%

Apples (1kg)

$4.95 CA$6.94

$5.20 ₡2,338

-4.81%

Banana (1kg)

$1.10 CA$1.54

$1.65 ₡740

-33.33%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.97 CA$4.16

$4.89 ₡2,198

-39.26%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.02 CA$5.64

$3.84 ₡1,728

4.69%

Potato (1kg)

$2.41 CA$3.38

$3.91 ₡1,757

-38.36%

Onion (1kg)

$2.15 CA$3.01

$3.76 ₡1,692

-42.82%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.27 CA$3.19

$1.12 ₡504

102.68%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.87 CA$2.62

$3.22 ₡1,447

-41.93%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$11.44 CA$16.03

$6.02 ₡2,706

90.03%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.48 CA$18.89

$19.84 ₡8,919

-32.06%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.06 CA$2.89

$2.81 ₡1,264

-26.69%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.64 CA$3.70

$3.65 ₡1,643

-27.67%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.93 CA$4.10

$1.08 ₡487

171.30%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$56.1 CA$78.6

$65.2 ₡29.3K

-14.06%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.17 CA$4.45

$2.26 ₡1,018

40.27%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.48 CA$2.07

$1.78 ₡799

-16.85%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$29.13 CA$40.83

$7.90 ₡3,551

268.73%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.03 CA$1.44

$1.50 ₡673

-31.33%

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

$24.7K CA$34.7K

$33.5K ₡15.1M

-26.07%

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

$19.5K CA$27.3K

$42.3K ₡19.0M

-53.92%

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

$237 CA$333

$93.2 ₡41.9K

154.58%

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

$55.5 CA$77.8

$36.13 ₡16.2K

53.61%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$52.8 CA$74.0

$60.6 ₡27.2K

-12.87%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$42.61 CA$59.7

$68.9 ₡31.0K

-38.18%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$20.86 CA$29.24

$24.94 ₡11.2K

-16.36%

Cinema Ticket

$14.32 CA$20.07

$7.67 ₡3,449

86.70%

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

$413 CA$580

$972 ₡436.9K

-57.45%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$10.7K CA$15.0K

$18.9K ₡8.5M

-43.45%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$68.1 CA$95.4

$70.6 ₡31.8K

-3.63%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$46.95 CA$65.8

$56.7 ₡25.5K

-17.17%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$89.9 CA$126

$129 ₡57.8K

-30.07%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$142 CA$199

$131 ₡58.8K

8.64%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,490 CA$2,089

$1,170 ₡525.9K

27.44%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,408 CA$1,974

$943 ₡424.1K

49.30%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,591 CA$3,632

$1,984 ₡892.0K

30.62%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,102 CA$2,946

$1,400 ₡629.5K

50.10%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,875 CA$6,833

$2,681 ₡1.2M

81.82%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,144 CA$5,809

$2,037 ₡915.8K

103.49%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,169 CA$4,443

$987 ₡443.6K

221.23%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.69

8.62

-33.99%

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

Last update for Milton: 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

$1.4K 51.8%

San Jose

$943 44.8% 33% $465

Groceries & Markets

Milton

$422 15.5%

San Jose

$403 19.1% 4.5% $19

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Milton

$346 12.7%

San Jose

$190 9% 45% $156

Eating Out

Milton

$240 8.8%

San Jose

$232 11% 3% $7.2

Clothing & Footwear

Milton

$156 5.7%

San Jose

$174 8.3% 11.4% $18

Getting Around

Milton

$78 2.9%

San Jose

$81 3.8% 3.1% $2.4

Sport & Entertainment

Milton

$71 2.6%

San Jose

$84 4% 18.3% $13

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,490 in Milton and $1,170 in San Jose. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Milton pays about 3.2 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $71 in Milton vs $62 in San Jose for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $422 vs $403 per month, with San Jose cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇦 Milton

🇨🇷 San Jose

🕒 Local time

08:44 8:44 AM

07:44 7:44 AM

1 h behind Milton

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

110,128

342,188 Capital

💱 Currency

Canadian Dollar CAD $

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

1 CAD = 0.713 USD

1 CAD = 0.635 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, USD, EUR to CAD – Canadian Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇦 Canadian Dollar ($)

Canadian Dollar exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 1.4 CAD (1 CAD = 0.713 USD). 1 EUR = 1.57 CAD (1 CAD = 0.635 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).

USD to CAD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Milton San Jose 3,760 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

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

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,721 in Milton and $2,107 in San Jose, so San Jose is about 23% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Milton is about 3.2 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: $1,490 in Milton 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 runs roughly 14% less than in San Jose. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

Childcare runs $413 in Milton versus $972 in San Jose. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $2,107 in San Jose versus $2,721 in Milton, a $2,500 budget is realistic in San Jose but tight or insufficient in Milton. 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 on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.