Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Montclair, NJ and San Jose

For one person, living is cheaper in San Jose: $2,107 a month against $2,908 in Montclair, NJ, rent and utilities included – about $9,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

139

Cost of Living Index in Montclair, NJ
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Montclair, NJ Living Index
101

Cost of Living Index in San Jose
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San Jose Living Index

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Montclair, NJ

🇺🇸 United States

$2,908

/mo nomad

San Jose

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$2,107

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,908 per month in Montclair, NJ vs $2,107 in San Jose, rent included.

Montclair, NJ $2,908
San Jose $2,107

A couple spends around $4,306 per month in Montclair, NJ vs $3,081 in San Jose, rent included.

Montclair, NJ $4,306
San Jose $3,081

A family of three spends $5,704 per month in Montclair, NJ vs $4,054 in San Jose, rent included.

Montclair, NJ $5,704
San Jose $4,054

Montclair, NJ costs about 38% more than San Jose, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Montclair, NJ and San Jose sit above the global median – Montclair, NJ by 115%, San Jose by 56%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$19.86 $19.86

$12.37 ₡5,563

60.55%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$80.7 $80.7

$62.4 ₡28.0K

29.43%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.87 $12.87

$11.71 ₡5,264

9.91%

Cappuccino

$6.40 $6.40

$4.54 ₡2,040

40.97%

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

$2.44 $2.44

$2.75 ₡1,238

-11.27%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.47 $1.47

$1.86 ₡837

-20.97%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.07 $8.07

$3.35 ₡1,505

140.90%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.06 $7.06

$4.32 ₡1,944

63.43%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.27 $1.27

$2.36 ₡1,061

-46.19%

White Bread (500g)

$4.56 $4.56

$3.07 ₡1,379

48.53%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$6.18 $6.18

$2.51 ₡1,128

146.22%

Eggs

$6.07 $6.07

$3.53 ₡1,585

71.95%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.74 $13.74

$10.54 ₡4,738

30.36%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.31 $10.31

$10.57 ₡4,754

-2.46%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$20.06 $20.06

$13.92 ₡6,261

44.11%

Apples (1kg)

$5.91 $5.91

$5.20 ₡2,338

13.65%

Banana (1kg)

$2.32 $2.32

$1.65 ₡740

40.61%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.21 $4.21

$4.89 ₡2,198

-13.91%

Tomato (1kg)

$5.33 $5.33

$3.84 ₡1,728

38.80%

Potato (1kg)

$3.11 $3.11

$3.91 ₡1,757

-20.46%

Onion (1kg)

$3.06 $3.06

$3.76 ₡1,692

-18.62%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.91 $2.91

$1.12 ₡504

159.82%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.62 $2.62

$3.22 ₡1,447

-18.63%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$14.59 $14.59

$6.02 ₡2,706

142.36%

Wine (Bottle)

$15.29 $15.29

$19.84 ₡8,919

-22.93%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.76 $1.76

$2.81 ₡1,264

-37.37%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.68 $3.68

$3.65 ₡1,643

0.82%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.08 ₡487

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$65.2 ₡29.3K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.96 $2.96

$2.26 ₡1,018

30.97%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.21 $2.21

$1.78 ₡799

24.16%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$42.37 $42.37

$7.90 ₡3,551

436.33%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.11 $1.11

$1.50 ₡673

-26.00%

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

$27.5K $27.5K

$33.5K ₡15.1M

-17.83%

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

$25.7K $25.7K

$42.3K ₡19.0M

-39.29%

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

$172 $172

$93.2 ₡41.9K

84.69%

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

$50.2 $50.2

$36.13 ₡16.2K

38.89%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$50.4 $50.4

$60.6 ₡27.2K

-16.82%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$81.0 $81.0

$68.9 ₡31.0K

17.44%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.94 ₡11.2K

Cinema Ticket

$20.28 $20.28

$7.67 ₡3,449

164.41%

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

$1,782 $1,782

$972 ₡436.9K

83.42%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$20.5K $20.5K

$18.9K ₡8.5M

8.62%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$71.3 $71.3

$70.6 ₡31.8K

0.91%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$52.9 $52.9

$56.7 ₡25.5K

-6.69%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$99.9 $99.9

$129 ₡57.8K

-22.31%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$119 $119

$131 ₡58.8K

-9.16%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,276 $2,276

$1,170 ₡525.9K

94.57%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,549 $1,549

$943 ₡424.1K

64.22%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,736 $3,736

$1,984 ₡892.0K

88.34%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,631 $2,631

$1,400 ₡629.5K

87.89%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,681 ₡1.2M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,037 ₡915.8K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$987 ₡443.6K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.72

8.62

-22.04%

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

Last update for Montclair, NJ: October 31, 2026

Last update for San Jose: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Montclair, NJ

$1.5K 53.3%

San Jose

$943 44.8% 39.1% $606

Groceries & Markets

Montclair, NJ

$453 15.6%

San Jose

$403 19.1% 11% $50

Eating Out

Montclair, NJ

$344 11.8%

San Jose

$232 11% 32.5% $112

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Montclair, NJ

$273 9.4%

San Jose

$190 9% 30.4% $83

Clothing & Footwear

Montclair, NJ

$154 5.3%

San Jose

$174 8.3% 12.8% $20

Sport & Entertainment

Montclair, NJ

$122 4.2%

San Jose

$84 4% 30.7% $37

Getting Around

Montclair, NJ

$14 * 0.5%

San Jose

$81 3.8% 476% $67

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $2,276 in Montclair, NJ versus $1,170 in San Jose. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $81 in Montclair, NJ versus $62 in San Jose. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $453 vs $403 – making San Jose the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Montclair, NJ

🇨🇷 San Jose

🕒 Local time

16:41 4:41 PM

15:41 3:41 PM

1 h behind Montclair, NJ

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

37,669

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

Montclair, NJ San Jose 3,570 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

Montclair, NJ
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

Montclair, NJ vs San Jose: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Montclair, NJ is pricier by about 38%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $4,363 per month in Montclair, NJ and $3,161 in San Jose. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in San Jose, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $1,170 there versus $2,276 in Montclair, NJ.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $2,908 in Montclair, NJ and $2,107 in San Jose. That makes San Jose about 28% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $1,782 per month in Montclair, NJ and $972 in San Jose. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $2,500 monthly budget goes further in San Jose, where all-in costs run around $2,107, than in Montclair, NJ at $2,908. In San Jose it covers expenses comfortably, while in Montclair, NJ it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward San Jose – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.