Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Nogales and San Jose

For one person, living is cheaper in Nogales: $1,138 a month against $1,949 in San Jose, rent and utilities included – about $9,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

56

Cost of Living Index in Nogales
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Nogales Living Index
93

Cost of Living Index in San Jose
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San Jose Living Index

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Nogales

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,138

/mo nomad

San Jose

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,949

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,138 in Nogales versus $1,949 in San Jose.

Nogales $1,138
San Jose $1,949

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,854 in Nogales versus $2,903 in San Jose.

Nogales $1,854
San Jose $2,903

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,570 in Nogales versus $3,857 in San Jose.

Nogales $2,570
San Jose $3,857

Living in Nogales costs roughly 42% less than in San Jose, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Nogales is 15% below, San Jose is 45% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.96 MX$199

$12.22 ₡5,510

-10.31%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$45.05 MX$820

$60.1 ₡27.1K

-25.08%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.37 MX$152

$11.77 ₡5,305

-28.89%

Cappuccino

$3.62 MX$65.8

$4.30 ₡1,939

-15.81%

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

$1.35 MX$24.56

$2.72 ₡1,226

-50.37%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.04 MX$18.83

$1.84 ₡830

-43.48%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.58 MX$46.86

$3.28 ₡1,480

-21.34%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.10 MX$74.6

$4.36 ₡1,966

-5.96%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.58 MX$28.83

$2.38 ₡1,074

-33.61%

White Bread (500g)

$2.63 MX$47.77

$3.12 ₡1,408

-15.71%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.73 MX$31.56

$2.41 ₡1,086

-28.22%

Eggs

$2.55 MX$46.34

$3.47 ₡1,564

-26.51%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.49 MX$154

$10.57 ₡4,767

-19.68%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.51 MX$155

$10.56 ₡4,758

-19.41%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.84 MX$215

$13.75 ₡6,196

-13.89%

Apples (1kg)

$2.73 MX$49.58

$5.04 ₡2,274

-45.83%

Banana (1kg)

$1.59 MX$28.89

$1.61 ₡727

-1.24%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.91 MX$34.83

$4.59 ₡2,069

-58.39%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.85 MX$33.73

$3.84 ₡1,731

-51.82%

Potato (1kg)

$1.96 MX$35.68

$3.77 ₡1,700

-48.01%

Onion (1kg)

$1.92 MX$34.86

$3.76 ₡1,693

-48.94%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.45 MX$26.30

$1.12 ₡506

29.46%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.11 MX$20.12

$3.20 ₡1,441

-65.31%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.33 MX$78.7

$5.84 ₡2,632

-25.86%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.64 MX$194

$19.73 ₡8,897

-46.07%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.84 MX$33.40

$2.75 ₡1,240

-33.09%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.25 MX$59.2

$3.66 ₡1,650

-11.20%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.69 MX$12.54

$1.12 ₡503

-38.39%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$65.1 ₡29.4K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.58 MX$47.00

$2.46 ₡1,110

4.88%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.06 MX$37.44

$1.54 ₡692

33.77%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$11.28 MX$205

$8.46 ₡3,815

33.33%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.48 MX$26.89

$1.55 ₡699

-4.52%

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

$21.2K MX$385.8K

$21.7K ₡9.8M

-2.27%

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

$24.9K MX$452.4K

$34.9K ₡15.7M

-28.69%

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

$62.4 MX$1,136

$94.7 ₡42.7K

-34.05%

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

$22.44 MX$408

$35.11 ₡15.8K

-36.09%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.41 MX$553

$58.6 ₡26.4K

-48.06%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$34.79 MX$633

$72.2 ₡32.5K

-51.79%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$20.65 MX$376

$25.19 ₡11.4K

-18.02%

Cinema Ticket

$5.22 MX$94.9

$7.83 ₡3,532

-33.33%

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

$224 MX$4,067

$971 ₡437.9K

-76.99%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,654 MX$84.7K

$17.0K ₡7.7M

-72.62%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$55.1 MX$1,002

$71.6 ₡32.3K

-23.02%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.38 MX$771

$54.9 ₡24.7K

-22.73%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$103 MX$1,874

$129 ₡58.2K

-20.15%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$92.4 MX$1,681

$133 ₡60.0K

-30.61%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$614 MX$11.2K

$934 ₡420.9K

-34.20%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$400 MX$7,273

$770 ₡347.2K

-48.09%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,072 MX$19.5K

$1,945 ₡876.7K

-44.87%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$786 MX$14.3K

$1,316 ₡593.5K

-40.30%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,927 MX$35.1K

$2,277 ₡1.0M

-15.35%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,151 MX$20.9K

$1,795 ₡809.1K

-35.88%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,006 ₡453.5K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.3

8.62

31.09%

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

Last update for Nogales: October 3, 2026

Last update for San Jose: October 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Nogales

$400 34.4%

San Jose

$770 39.9% 92.6% $370

Groceries & Markets

Nogales

$269 23.1%

San Jose

$399 20.7% 48.5% $130

Eating Out

Nogales

$187 16.1%

San Jose

$228 11.8% 22.1% $41

Clothing & Footwear

Nogales

$132 11.3%

San Jose

$175 9.1% 32.7% $43

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Nogales

$115 9.9%

San Jose

$188 9.8% 63.4% $73

Sport & Entertainment

Nogales

$45 3.9%

San Jose

$88 4.6% 94.2% $43

Getting Around

Nogales

$16 * 1.3%

San Jose

$80 4.1% 410% $64

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

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $614 in Nogales and $934 in San Jose. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $45.00 in Nogales vs $60.0 in San Jose for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $269 vs $399 per month, with Nogales cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Nogales

🇨🇷 San Jose

🕒 Local time

04:31 4:31 AM

05:31 5:31 AM

1 h ahead of Nogales

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

261,137

342,188 Capital

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.5 USD

100 MXN = 4.91 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 18.19 MXN (100 MXN = 5.5 USD). 1 EUR = 20.38 MXN (100 MXN = 4.91 EUR).

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 451 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD). 1 EUR = 505 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Nogales San Jose 3,650 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

Nogales
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

Nogales vs San Jose: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Nogales and San Jose differ by about 71% in total monthly costs ($1,138 vs $1,949 including rent). Nogales is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You'd need roughly $1,707 in Nogales and $2,924 in San Jose to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $614 in Nogales versus $934 in San Jose. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $224 in Nogales versus $971 in San Jose. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Nogales – a meal for two runs $45.00 versus $60.0 in San Jose. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,138 in Nogales versus $1,949 in San Jose, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Nogales but tight or insufficient in San Jose. The gap between the two cities makes Nogales the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Expats usually find Nogales gentler on the wallet – expenses run 71% less than in San Jose. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.