Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between New York, NY and Perez Zeledon

For one person, living is cheaper in Perez Zeledon: $1,315 a month against $4,906 in New York, NY, rent and utilities included – about $43,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

234

Cost of Living Index in New York, NY
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New York, NY Living Index
63

Cost of Living Index in Perez Zeledon
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Perez Zeledon Living Index

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New York, NY

🇺🇸 United States

$4,906

/mo nomad

Perez Zeledon

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,315

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in New York, NY and in Perez Zeledon

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in New York, NY and in Perez Zeledon actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $4,906 per month in New York, NY vs $1,315 in Perez Zeledon, rent included.

New York, NY $4,906
Perez Zeledon $1,315

A couple spends around $7,273 per month in New York, NY vs $2,359 in Perez Zeledon, rent included.

New York, NY $7,273
Perez Zeledon $2,359

A family of three spends $9,641 per month in New York, NY vs $3,403 in Perez Zeledon, rent included.

New York, NY $9,641
Perez Zeledon $3,403

New York, NY costs about 273% more than Perez Zeledon, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

New York, NY sits 263% above the global median, while Perez Zeledon is 3% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$26.93 $26.93

$9.30 ₡4,182

189.57%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$117 $117

$36.08 ₡16.2K

223.70%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$14.60 $14.60

$8.03 ₡3,612

81.82%

Cappuccino

$6.54 $6.54

$2.66 ₡1,197

145.86%

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

$3.86 $3.86

$1.88 ₡844

105.32%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.95 $2.95

$1.78 ₡799

65.73%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.08 $8.08

$1.71 ₡770

372.51%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$9.85 $9.85

$3.10 ₡1,395

217.74%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.31 $1.31

$1.60 ₡722

-18.13%

White Bread (500g)

$4.97 $4.97

$3.03 ₡1,361

64.03%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$7.70 $7.70

$2.50 ₡1,123

208.00%

Eggs

$6.09 $6.09

$2.45 ₡1,099

148.57%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.55 $19.55

$10.64 ₡4,782

83.74%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$17.59 $17.59

$10.51 ₡4,724

67.36%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$20.26 $20.26

$13.92 ₡6,261

45.55%

Apples (1kg)

$6.99 $6.99

$5.02 ₡2,257

39.24%

Banana (1kg)

$2.21 $2.21

$1.12 ₡506

97.32%

Oranges (1kg)

$6.72 $6.72

$4.80 ₡2,156

40.00%

Tomato (1kg)

$7.12 $7.12

$3.92 ₡1,765

81.63%

Potato (1kg)

$4.61 $4.61

$3.72 ₡1,674

23.92%

Onion (1kg)

$4.78 $4.78

$3.60 ₡1,619

32.78%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.87 $2.87

$0.42 ₡189

583.33%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.69 $2.69

$3.12 ₡1,401

-13.78%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$19.14 $19.14

$5.61 ₡2,523

241.18%

Wine (Bottle)

$19.63 $19.63

$19.82 ₡8,913

-0.96%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.32 $3.32

$2.77 ₡1,247

19.86%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.19 $4.19

$3.71 ₡1,669

12.94%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.02 $3.02

$0.80 ₡358

277.50%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$139 $139

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.04 $3.04

$2.47 ₡1,111

23.08%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.20 $2.20

$1.56 ₡699

41.03%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$41.33 $41.33

$8.93 ₡4,015

362.82%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.13 $1.13

$1.49 ₡668

-24.16%

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

$34.5K $34.5K

$33.7K ₡15.1M

2.35%

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

$25.8K $25.8K

$42.4K ₡19.1M

-39.00%

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

$232 $232

$95.6 ₡43.0K

142.94%

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

$71.0 $71.0

$23.58 ₡10.6K

201.23%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$67.7 $67.7

$58.2 ₡26.2K

16.26%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$115 $115

$68.7 ₡30.9K

67.96%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$76.8 $76.8

Cinema Ticket

$22.41 $22.41

$7.70 ₡3,464

191.04%

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

$3,606 $3,606

$510 ₡229.1K

607.64%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$68.7K $68.7K

$17.1K ₡7.7M

302.71%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$79.3 $79.3

$72.3 ₡32.5K

9.55%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$51.4 $51.4

$54.8 ₡24.7K

-6.27%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$121 $121

$130 ₡58.4K

-6.84%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$140 $140

$134 ₡60.0K

5.18%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$4,555 $4,555

$397 ₡178.6K

1046.72%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,040 $3,040

$323 ₡145.3K

840.81%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$9,742 $9,742

$1,881 ₡846.0K

417.81%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$5,331 $5,331

$1,257 ₡565.4K

323.94%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$18.2K $18.2K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,685 $6,685

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$5,096 $5,096

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.89

8.62

-20.07%

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

Last update for New York, NY: November 1, 2026

Last update for Perez Zeledon: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

New York, NY

$3K 62%

Perez Zeledon

$323 24.6% 89.4% $2.7K

Groceries & Markets

New York, NY

$567 11.6%

Perez Zeledon

$381 29% 32.8% $186

Eating Out

New York, NY

$425 8.7%

Perez Zeledon

$160 12.2% 62.4% $265

Monthly Utilities & Internet

New York, NY

$371 7.6%

Perez Zeledon

$177 13.5% 52.2% $194

Clothing & Footwear

New York, NY

$176 3.6%

Perez Zeledon

$176 13.4% 0.4% $0.7

Getting Around

New York, NY

$165 3.4%

Perez Zeledon

$13 * 1% 91.9% $152

Sport & Entertainment

New York, NY

$160 3.3%

Perez Zeledon

$84 6.4% 47.5% $76

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $4,555 in New York, NY versus $397 in Perez Zeledon. 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 $117 in New York, NY versus $36 in Perez Zeledon. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $567 vs $381 – making Perez Zeledon the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇺🇸 New York, NY

🇨🇷 Perez Zeledon

🕒 Local time

17:38 5:38 PM

16:38 4:38 PM

1 h behind New York, NY

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

8,804,190

135,000

💱 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

New York, NY Perez Zeledon 3,610 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

New York, NY
Perez Zeledon

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 York, NY vs Perez Zeledon: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

New York, NY costs about 273% more than Perez Zeledon, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from eating out. That’s enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $7,358 per month in New York, NY and $1,973 in Perez Zeledon. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Perez Zeledon, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $397 there versus $4,555 in New York, NY.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $4,906 in New York, NY and $1,315 in Perez Zeledon. That makes Perez Zeledon about 73% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $3,606 per month in New York, NY and $510 in Perez Zeledon. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Perez Zeledon, where all-in costs run around $1,315, than in New York, NY at $4,906. In Perez Zeledon it covers expenses comfortably, while in New York, NY it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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