Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between New York, NY and San Juan

For one person, living is cheaper in San Juan: $890 a month against $4,950 in New York, NY, rent and utilities included – about $48,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

239

Cost of Living Index in New York, NY
Learn more

New York, NY Living Index
43

Cost of Living Index in San Juan
Learn more

San Juan Living Index

Jump to prices

New York, NY

🇺🇸 United States

$4,950

/mo nomad

San Juan

🇦🇷 Argentina

$890

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $4,950 per month in New York, NY vs $890 in San Juan, rent included.

New York, NY $4,950
San Juan $890

A couple spends around $7,265 per month in New York, NY vs $1,389 in San Juan, rent included.

New York, NY $7,265
San Juan $1,389

A family of three spends $9,581 per month in New York, NY vs $1,888 in San Juan, rent included.

New York, NY $9,581
San Juan $1,888

New York, NY costs about 456% more than San Juan, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

New York, NY sits 267% above the global median, while San Juan is 34% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$24.65 $24.65

$6.76 ARS 10.3K

264.64%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$122 $122

$39.31 ARS 59.7K

209.18%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.91 $13.91

$12.08 ARS 18.3K

15.15%

Cappuccino

$6.59 $6.59

$2.59 ARS 3,938

154.44%

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

$3.84 $3.84

$2.11 ARS 3,202

81.99%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.87 $2.87

$1.82 ARS 2,761

57.69%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.79 $7.79

$3.91 ARS 5,930

99.23%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$9.85 $9.85

$4.48 ARS 6,799

119.87%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.38 $1.38

$1.38 ARS 2,101

White Bread (500g)

$4.68 $4.68

$1.45 ARS 2,195

222.76%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$7.54 $7.54

$1.40 ARS 2,124

438.57%

Eggs

$5.93 $5.93

$1.44 ARS 2,184

311.81%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$18.83 $18.83

$2.84 ARS 4,305

563.03%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$17.36 $17.36

$6.23 ARS 9,448

178.65%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$18.51 $18.51

$10.90 ARS 16.5K

69.82%

Apples (1kg)

$6.74 $6.74

$1.40 ARS 2,129

381.43%

Banana (1kg)

$2.09 $2.09

$1.39 ARS 2,108

50.36%

Oranges (1kg)

$6.07 $6.07

$1.34 ARS 2,037

352.99%

Tomato (1kg)

$6.74 $6.74

$1.45 ARS 2,193

364.83%

Potato (1kg)

$4.05 $4.05

$1.40 ARS 2,128

189.29%

Onion (1kg)

$4.37 $4.37

$1.38 ARS 2,098

216.67%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.89 $2.89

$1.40 ARS 2,129

106.43%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.60 $2.60

$1.44 ARS 2,183

80.56%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$18.72 $18.72

$2.71 ARS 4,117

590.77%

Wine (Bottle)

$20.06 $20.06

$4.90 ARS 7,433

309.39%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.25 $3.25

$1.41 ARS 2,136

130.50%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.73 $3.73

$1.44 ARS 2,178

159.03%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.06 $3.06

$0.96 ARS 1,460

218.75%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$140 $140

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.04 $3.04

$1.98 ARS 3,006

53.54%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.15 $2.15

$0.99 ARS 1,495

117.17%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$41.82 $41.82

$4.84 ARS 7,351

764.05%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.12 $1.12

$1.17 ARS 1,782

-4.27%

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

$35.5K $35.5K

$26.7K ARS 40.6M

32.62%

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

$26.0K $26.0K

$33.6K ARS 51.1M

-22.62%

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

$219 $219

$144 ARS 218.7K

51.96%

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

$73.2 $73.2

$10.04 ARS 15.2K

628.98%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$72.0 $72.0

$17.82 ARS 27.0K

303.98%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$123 $123

$30.42 ARS 46.2K

303.32%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$67.7 $67.7

Cinema Ticket

$22.85 $22.85

$6.93 ARS 10.5K

229.73%

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

$3,333 $3,333

$172 ARS 260.5K

1841.41%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$60.0K $60.0K

$4,122 ARS 6.3M

1355.41%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$75.2 $75.2

$107 ARS 162.3K

-29.71%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$52.4 $52.4

$42.58 ARS 64.6K

23.04%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$122 $122

$58.1 ARS 88.1K

109.49%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$133 $133

$35.86 ARS 54.4K

271.31%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$4,389 $4,389

$249 ARS 378.2K

1660.95%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,130 $3,130

$198 ARS 301.1K

1477.28%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$8,918 $8,918

$492 ARS 747.1K

1711.44%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$5,354 $5,354

$400 ARS 607.2K

1237.88%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$19.4K $19.4K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,806 $6,806

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$5,343 $5,343

$700 ARS 1.1M

663.37%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.82

-87.37%

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

Last update for New York, NY: October 13, 2026

Last update for San Juan: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

New York, NY

$3.1K 63.2%

San Juan

$198 22.3% 93.7% $2.9K

Groceries & Markets

New York, NY

$545 11%

San Juan

$190 21.3% 65.2% $356

Eating Out

New York, NY

$404 8.2%

San Juan

$166 18.6% 58.9% $238

Monthly Utilities & Internet

New York, NY

$364 7.4%

San Juan

$172 19.3% 52.8% $192

Clothing & Footwear

New York, NY

$172 3.5%

San Juan

$110 12.3% 36.3% $63

Sport & Entertainment

New York, NY

$168 3.4%

San Juan

$44 5% 73.7% $124

Getting Around

New York, NY

$167 3.4%

San Juan

$11 * 1.2% 93.5% $156

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $4,389 in New York, NY versus $249 in San Juan. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 663% higher in New York, NY, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $122 in New York, NY versus $39.00 in San Juan. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $545 vs $190 – making San Juan the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇺🇸 New York, NY

🇦🇷 San Juan

🕒 Local time

14:33 2:33 PM

15:33 3:33 PM

1 h ahead of New York, NY

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

8,804,190

522,029

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Argentine Peso ARS $

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.889 EUR

10,000 ARS = 6.59 USD

10,000 ARS = 5.86 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ARS, EUR to USD – United States Dollar Converter

🇦🇷 Argentine Peso ($)

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

United States Dollar exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.889 EUR).

Argentine Peso exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 1,517 ARS (10,000 ARS = 6.59 USD). 1 EUR = 1,706 ARS (10,000 ARS = 5.86 EUR).

ARS to USD in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

New York, NY San Juan 8,050 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

New York, NY
San Juan

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 San Juan: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

New York, NY costs about 456% more than San Juan, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from groceries. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $7,424 per month in New York, NY and $1,335 in San Juan. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in San Juan, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $4,950 in New York, NY and $890 in San Juan. That's a gap of about 456%.

Kindergarten costs $3,333 per month in New York, NY and $172 in San Juan. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in San Juan, where all-in costs run around $890, than in New York, NY at $4,950. In San Juan it covers expenses comfortably, while in New York, NY it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. San Juan costs $890 versus $4,950 in New York, NY. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with San Juan. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, New York, NY makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.