Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between New York, NY and Santa Teresa

For one person, living is cheaper in Santa Teresa: $1,530 a month against $4,906 in New York, NY, rent and utilities included – about $40,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

234

Cost of Living Index in New York, NY
Learn more

New York, NY Living Index
73

Cost of Living Index in Santa Teresa
Learn more

Santa Teresa Living Index

Jump to prices

New York, NY

🇺🇸 United States

$4,906

/mo nomad

Santa Teresa

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,530

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

A single person spends $4,906 per month in New York, NY vs $1,530 in Santa Teresa, rent included.

New York, NY $4,906
Santa Teresa $1,530

A couple spends around $7,273 per month in New York, NY vs $2,295 in Santa Teresa, rent included.

New York, NY $7,273
Santa Teresa $2,295

A family of three spends $9,641 per month in New York, NY vs $3,061 in Santa Teresa, rent included.

New York, NY $9,641
Santa Teresa $3,061

New York, NY costs about 221% more than Santa Teresa, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both New York, NY and Santa Teresa sit above the global median – New York, NY by 263%, Santa Teresa by 13%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$26.93 $26.93

$9.90 ₡4,438

172.02%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$117 $117

$42.31 ₡19.0K

176.03%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$14.60 $14.60

$9.71 ₡4,353

50.36%

Cappuccino

$6.54 $6.54

$3.70 ₡1,659

76.76%

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

$3.86 $3.86

$2.04 ₡913

89.22%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.95 $2.95

$1.63 ₡731

80.98%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.08 $8.08

$3.03 ₡1,359

166.67%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$9.85 $9.85

$4.55 ₡2,038

116.48%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.31 $1.31

$2.05 ₡921

-36.10%

White Bread (500g)

$4.97 $4.97

$2.82 ₡1,264

76.24%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$7.70 $7.70

$2.16 ₡967

256.48%

Eggs

$6.09 $6.09

$2.98 ₡1,338

104.36%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.55 $19.55

$10.01 ₡4,487

95.30%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$17.59 $17.59

$8.97 ₡4,023

96.10%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$20.26 $20.26

$13.60 ₡6,097

48.97%

Apples (1kg)

$6.99 $6.99

$4.56 ₡2,042

53.29%

Banana (1kg)

$2.21 $2.21

$1.44 ₡648

53.47%

Oranges (1kg)

$6.72 $6.72

$4.12 ₡1,847

63.11%

Tomato (1kg)

$7.12 $7.12

$3.07 ₡1,378

131.92%

Potato (1kg)

$4.61 $4.61

$3.39 ₡1,518

35.99%

Onion (1kg)

$4.78 $4.78

$2.58 ₡1,155

85.27%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.87 $2.87

$1.01 ₡453

184.16%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.69 $2.69

$2.85 ₡1,276

-5.61%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$19.14 $19.14

$5.09 ₡2,280

276.03%

Wine (Bottle)

$19.63 $19.63

$13.79 ₡6,181

42.35%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.32 $3.32

$2.36 ₡1,058

40.68%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.19 $4.19

$2.62 ₡1,174

59.92%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.02 $3.02

$0.96 ₡431

214.58%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$139 $139

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.04 $3.04

$1.84 ₡826

65.22%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.20 $2.20

$1.83 ₡822

20.22%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$41.33 $41.33

$7.95 ₡3,563

419.87%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.13 $1.13

$1.46 ₡656

-22.60%

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

$34.5K $34.5K

$38.4K ₡17.2M

-10.24%

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

$25.8K $25.8K

$32.7K ₡14.7M

-21.02%

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

$232 $232

$84.9 ₡38.1K

173.67%

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

$71.0 $71.0

$26.16 ₡11.7K

171.52%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$67.7 $67.7

$50.4 ₡22.6K

34.23%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$115 $115

$50.1 ₡22.4K

130.42%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$76.8 $76.8

$23.66 ₡10.6K

224.64%

Cinema Ticket

$22.41 $22.41

$8.89 ₡3,984

152.08%

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

$3,606 $3,606

$573 ₡256.6K

529.80%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$68.7K $68.7K

$12.4K ₡5.6M

452.96%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$79.3 $79.3

$61.8 ₡27.7K

28.30%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$51.4 $51.4

$51.2 ₡22.9K

0.45%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$121 $121

$127 ₡57.1K

-5.00%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$140 $140

$107 ₡47.8K

31.67%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$4,555 $4,555

$706 ₡316.7K

544.75%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,040 $3,040

$592 ₡265.3K

413.73%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$9,742 $9,742

$1,461 ₡654.7K

567.06%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$5,331 $5,331

$955 ₡427.9K

458.47%

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

10.17

-32.25%

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 Santa Teresa: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

New York, NY

$3K 62%

Santa Teresa

$592 38.7% 80.5% $2.4K

Groceries & Markets

New York, NY

$567 11.6%

Santa Teresa

$346 22.6% 38.9% $221

Eating Out

New York, NY

$425 8.7%

Santa Teresa

$192 12.5% 54.9% $233

Monthly Utilities & Internet

New York, NY

$371 7.6%

Santa Teresa

$161 10.6% 56.5% $210

Clothing & Footwear

New York, NY

$176 3.6%

Santa Teresa

$156 10.2% 11.5% $20

Getting Around

New York, NY

$165 3.4%

Santa Teresa

$15 * 1% 91% $151

Sport & Entertainment

New York, NY

$160 3.3%

Santa Teresa

$68 4.4% 57.7% $92

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 $706 in Santa Teresa. 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 $42 in Santa Teresa. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $567 vs $346 – making Santa Teresa the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇺🇸 New York, NY

🇨🇷 Santa Teresa

🕒 Local time

20:14 8:14 PM

19:14 7:14 PM

1 h behind New York, NY

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

8,804,190

3,099

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.895 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD

1,000 CRC = 2 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 7, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.895 EUR).

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of November 7, 2026: 1 USD = 448 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD). 1 EUR = 501 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2 EUR).

CRC to USD in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

New York, NY Santa Teresa 3,610 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

New York, NY
Santa Teresa

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 Santa Teresa: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

New York, NY costs about 221% more than Santa Teresa, 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 $2,295 in Santa Teresa. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Santa Teresa, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $706 there versus $4,555 in New York, NY.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $4,906 in New York, NY and $1,530 in Santa Teresa. That makes Santa Teresa about 69% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $3,606 per month in New York, NY and $573 in Santa Teresa. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

$1,500 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $4,906 in New York, NY and $1,530 in Santa Teresa. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Santa Teresa costs $1,530 versus $4,906 in New York, NY. Both appeal to remote workers, and the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.