Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between New York, NY and Quesada

For one person, living is cheaper in Quesada: $1,680 a month against $4,906 in New York, NY, rent and utilities included – about $38,700 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
80

Cost of Living Index in Quesada
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Quesada Living Index

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New York, NY

🇺🇸 United States

$4,906

/mo nomad

Quesada

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,680

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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 Quesada actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $4,906 per month in New York, NY vs $1,680 in Quesada, rent included.

New York, NY $4,906
Quesada $1,680

A couple spends around $7,273 per month in New York, NY vs $2,668 in Quesada, rent included.

New York, NY $7,273
Quesada $2,668

A family of three spends $9,641 per month in New York, NY vs $3,656 in Quesada, rent included.

New York, NY $9,641
Quesada $3,656

New York, NY costs about 192% more than Quesada, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both New York, NY and Quesada sit above the global median – New York, NY by 263%, Quesada by 24%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$26.93 $26.93

$12.40 ₡5,575

117.18%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$117 $117

$61.7 ₡27.8K

89.23%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$14.60 $14.60

$11.57 ₡5,203

26.19%

Cappuccino

$6.54 $6.54

$4.57 ₡2,056

43.11%

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

$3.86 $3.86

$2.75 ₡1,236

40.36%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.95 $2.95

$1.92 ₡865

53.65%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.08 $8.08

$3.27 ₡1,470

147.09%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$9.85 $9.85

$2.49 ₡1,119

295.58%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.31 $1.31

$2.41 ₡1,084

-45.64%

White Bread (500g)

$4.97 $4.97

$2.76 ₡1,240

80.07%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$7.70 $7.70

$2.45 ₡1,101

214.29%

Eggs

$6.09 $6.09

$2.60 ₡1,170

134.23%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.55 $19.55

$10.68 ₡4,801

83.05%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$17.59 $17.59

$10.58 ₡4,758

66.26%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$20.26 $20.26

$13.85 ₡6,227

46.28%

Apples (1kg)

$6.99 $6.99

$5.19 ₡2,333

34.68%

Banana (1kg)

$2.21 $2.21

$1.60 ₡718

38.12%

Oranges (1kg)

$6.72 $6.72

$1.12 ₡505

500.00%

Tomato (1kg)

$7.12 $7.12

$3.82 ₡1,719

86.39%

Potato (1kg)

$4.61 $4.61

$3.92 ₡1,762

17.60%

Onion (1kg)

$4.78 $4.78

$3.58 ₡1,611

33.52%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.87 $2.87

$1.12 ₡503

156.25%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.69 $2.69

$3.22 ₡1,448

-16.46%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$19.14 $19.14

$5.79 ₡2,604

230.57%

Wine (Bottle)

$19.63 $19.63

$15.29 ₡6,877

28.38%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.32 $3.32

$2.79 ₡1,254

19.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.19 $4.19

$3.58 ₡1,608

17.04%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.02 $3.02

$1.36 ₡610

122.06%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$139 $139

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.04 $3.04

$1.55 ₡697

96.13%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.20 $2.20

$1.63 ₡735

34.97%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$41.33 $41.33

$8.90 ₡4,003

364.38%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.13 $1.13

$1.52 ₡682

-25.66%

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

$34.5K $34.5K

$34.4K ₡15.5M

0.16%

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

$25.8K $25.8K

$41.9K ₡18.9M

-38.36%

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

$232 $232

$96.0 ₡43.2K

142.03%

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

$71.0 $71.0

$29.80 ₡13.4K

138.36%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$67.7 $67.7

$55.5 ₡24.9K

21.96%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$115 $115

$68.6 ₡30.8K

68.25%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$76.8 $76.8

$16.66 ₡7,490

361.04%

Cinema Ticket

$22.41 $22.41

$5.35 ₡2,405

318.88%

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

$3,606 $3,606

$253 ₡113.8K

1325.19%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$68.7K $68.7K

$4,284 ₡1.9M

1503.36%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$79.3 $79.3

$70.3 ₡31.6K

12.70%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$51.4 $51.4

$57.1 ₡25.7K

-9.92%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$121 $121

$130 ₡58.3K

-6.65%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$140 $140

$112 ₡50.3K

25.56%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$4,555 $4,555

$817 ₡367.3K

457.64%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,040 $3,040

$638 ₡287.1K

376.13%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$9,742 $9,742

$1,921 ₡863.7K

407.20%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$5,331 $5,331

$1,264 ₡568.6K

321.60%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$18.2K $18.2K

$4,128 ₡1.9M

341.44%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,685 $6,685

$2,196 ₡987.2K

204.49%

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 Quesada: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

New York, NY

$3K 62%

Quesada

$638 38% 79% $2.4K

Groceries & Markets

New York, NY

$567 11.6%

Quesada

$371 22.1% 34.6% $196

Eating Out

New York, NY

$425 8.7%

Quesada

$229 13.6% 46.2% $196

Monthly Utilities & Internet

New York, NY

$371 7.6%

Quesada

$181 10.8% 51.1% $190

Clothing & Footwear

New York, NY

$176 3.6%

Quesada

$166 9.9% 5.9% $10

Getting Around

New York, NY

$165 3.4%

Quesada

$15 * 0.9% 90.8% $150

Sport & Entertainment

New York, NY

$160 3.3%

Quesada

$79 4.7% 50.5% $81

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 $817 in Quesada. 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 $62 in Quesada. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $567 vs $371 – making Quesada the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇺🇸 New York, NY

🇨🇷 Quesada

🕒 Local time

08:16 8:16 AM

07:16 7:16 AM

1 h behind New York, NY

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

8,804,190

42,000

💱 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

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Between locations

New York, NY Quesada 3,520 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

New York, NY
Quesada

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 Quesada: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

New York, NY costs about 192% more than Quesada, 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 $2,520 in Quesada. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Quesada, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $817 there versus $4,555 in New York, NY.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $4,906 in New York, NY and $1,680 in Quesada. That makes Quesada about 66% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $3,606 per month in New York, NY and $253 in Quesada. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $3,000 monthly budget goes further in Quesada, where all-in costs run around $1,680, than in New York, NY at $4,906. In Quesada it covers expenses comfortably, while in New York, NY it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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