Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between New Bedford, MA and San Jose

For one person, living is cheaper in San Jose: $2,107 a month against $2,774 in New Bedford, MA, rent and utilities included – about $8,000 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in New Bedford, MA outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

132

Cost of Living Index in New Bedford, MA
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New Bedford, MA Living Index
101

Cost of Living Index in San Jose
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San Jose Living Index

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New Bedford, MA

🇺🇸 United States

$2,774

/mo nomad

San Jose

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$2,107

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,774 per month in New Bedford, MA vs $2,107 in San Jose, rent included.

New Bedford, MA $2,774
San Jose $2,107

A couple spends around $3,848 per month in New Bedford, MA vs $3,081 in San Jose, rent included.

New Bedford, MA $3,848
San Jose $3,081

A family of three spends $4,921 per month in New Bedford, MA vs $4,054 in San Jose, rent included.

New Bedford, MA $4,921
San Jose $4,054

New Bedford, MA costs about 32% more than San Jose, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both New Bedford, MA and San Jose sit above the global median – New Bedford, MA by 105%, San Jose by 56%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$19.61 $19.61

$12.37 ₡5,563

58.53%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$60.5 $60.5

$62.4 ₡28.0K

-3.06%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.83 $5.83

$11.71 ₡5,264

-50.21%

Cappuccino

$3.89 $3.89

$4.54 ₡2,040

-14.32%

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

$2.26 $2.26

$2.75 ₡1,238

-17.82%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.29 $1.29

$1.86 ₡837

-30.65%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.97 $5.97

$3.35 ₡1,505

78.21%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.91 $3.91

$4.32 ₡1,944

-9.49%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.05 $1.05

$2.36 ₡1,061

-55.51%

White Bread (500g)

$4.48 $4.48

$3.07 ₡1,379

45.93%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$16.29 $16.29

$2.51 ₡1,128

549.00%

Eggs

$6.47 $6.47

$3.53 ₡1,585

83.29%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.42 $10.42

$10.54 ₡4,738

-1.14%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.47 $10.47

$10.57 ₡4,754

-0.95%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.43 $19.43

$13.92 ₡6,261

39.58%

Apples (1kg)

$5.44 $5.44

$5.20 ₡2,338

4.62%

Banana (1kg)

$4.31 $4.31

$1.65 ₡740

161.21%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.33 $3.33

$4.89 ₡2,198

-31.90%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.15 $3.15

$3.84 ₡1,728

-17.97%

Potato (1kg)

$2.24 $2.24

$3.91 ₡1,757

-42.71%

Onion (1kg)

$2.39 $2.39

$3.76 ₡1,692

-36.44%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.63 $2.63

$1.12 ₡504

134.82%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.82 $2.82

$3.22 ₡1,447

-12.42%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$12.74 $12.74

$6.02 ₡2,706

111.63%

Wine (Bottle)

$17.07 $17.07

$19.84 ₡8,919

-13.96%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.81 $1.81

$2.81 ₡1,264

-35.59%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.75 $2.75

$3.65 ₡1,643

-24.66%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.08 ₡487

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$65.2 ₡29.3K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.71 $3.71

$2.26 ₡1,018

64.16%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.19 $2.19

$1.78 ₡799

23.03%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$48.09 $48.09

$7.90 ₡3,551

508.73%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.08 $1.08

$1.50 ₡673

-28.00%

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

$27.3K $27.3K

$33.5K ₡15.1M

-18.37%

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

$26.3K $26.3K

$42.3K ₡19.0M

-37.84%

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

$196 $196

$93.2 ₡41.9K

110.03%

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

$37.66 $37.66

$36.13 ₡16.2K

4.23%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$61.1 $61.1

$60.6 ₡27.2K

0.78%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$29.22 $29.22

$68.9 ₡31.0K

-57.61%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.94 ₡11.2K

Cinema Ticket

$12.30 $12.30

$7.67 ₡3,449

60.37%

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

$2,163 $2,163

$972 ₡436.9K

122.63%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$34.0K $34.0K

$18.9K ₡8.5M

80.35%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$37.99 $37.99

$70.6 ₡31.8K

-46.21%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$16.41 $16.41

$56.7 ₡25.5K

-71.05%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$98.8 $98.8

$129 ₡57.8K

-23.22%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$131 ₡58.8K

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,798 $1,798

$1,170 ₡525.9K

53.75%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,594 $1,594

$943 ₡424.1K

68.98%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,647 $2,647

$1,984 ₡892.0K

33.42%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,369 $2,369

$1,400 ₡629.5K

69.21%

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)

$4,565 $4,565

$987 ₡443.6K

362.72%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.42

8.62

-37.12%

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

Last update for New Bedford, MA: 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

New Bedford, MA

$1.6K 57.5%

San Jose

$943 44.8% 40.8% $651

Groceries & Markets

New Bedford, MA

$475 17.1%

San Jose

$403 19.1% 15.2% $72

Monthly Utilities & Internet

New Bedford, MA

$294 10.6%

San Jose

$190 9% 35.5% $105

Eating Out

New Bedford, MA

$273 9.8%

San Jose

$232 11% 14.9% $41

Clothing & Footwear

New Bedford, MA

$69 * 2.5%

San Jose

$174 8.3% 153% $105

Sport & Entertainment

New Bedford, MA

$54 1.9%

San Jose

$84 4% 56.6% $30

Getting Around

New Bedford, MA

$15 * 0.5%

San Jose

$81 3.8% 451% $66

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,798 in New Bedford, MA 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.

Salaries in New Bedford, MA are about 4.6 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $60 in New Bedford, MA versus $62 in San Jose. Groceries tell a different story – $475 in New Bedford, MA vs $403 in San Jose – so San Jose wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇺🇸 New Bedford, MA

🇨🇷 San Jose

🕒 Local time

13:37 1:37 PM

12:37 12:37 PM

1 h behind New Bedford, MA

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

92,538

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 →

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New Bedford, MA San Jose 3,750 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

New Bedford, MA
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

New Bedford, MA vs San Jose: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $2,774 in New Bedford, MA, $2,107 in San Jose – San Jose comes out roughly 24% cheaper. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $4,161 per month in New Bedford, MA 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 $1,798 in New Bedford, MA.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $60 in New Bedford, MA and $62 in San Jose. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 18% more in New Bedford, MA, though the gap depends on what you buy.

A $2,500 monthly budget goes further in San Jose, where all-in costs run around $2,107, than in New Bedford, MA at $2,774. In San Jose it covers expenses comfortably, while in New Bedford, MA 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.

If budget matters most, go with San Jose. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, New Bedford, MA makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.