Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Pétion-Ville and San Jose

For one person, living is cheaper in San Jose: $2,107 a month against $2,187 in Pétion-Ville, rent and utilities included – about $960 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

104

Cost of Living Index in Pétion-Ville
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Pétion-Ville Living Index
101

Cost of Living Index in San Jose
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San Jose Living Index

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Pétion-Ville

🇭🇹 Haiti

$2,187

/mo nomad

San Jose

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$2,107

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,187 per month in Pétion-Ville vs $2,107 in San Jose, rent included.

Pétion-Ville $2,187
San Jose $2,107

A couple spends around $3,588 per month in Pétion-Ville vs $3,081 in San Jose, rent included.

Pétion-Ville $3,588
San Jose $3,081

A family of three spends $4,988 per month in Pétion-Ville vs $4,054 in San Jose, rent included.

Pétion-Ville $4,988
San Jose $4,054

Pétion-Ville costs about 4% more than San Jose, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in utilities.

Both Pétion-Ville and San Jose sit above the global median – Pétion-Ville by 62%, San Jose by 56%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$14.77 HTG 1,929

$12.37 ₡5,563

19.40%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$92.3 HTG 12.0K

$62.4 ₡28.0K

47.93%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.63 HTG 1,519

$11.71 ₡5,264

-0.68%

Cappuccino

$3.91 HTG 510

$4.54 ₡2,040

-13.88%

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

$3.07 HTG 401

$2.75 ₡1,238

11.64%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.49 HTG 194

$1.86 ₡837

-19.89%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.45 HTG 972

$3.35 ₡1,505

122.39%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.99 HTG 1,174

$4.32 ₡1,944

108.10%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.10 HTG 274

$2.36 ₡1,061

-11.02%

White Bread (500g)

$2.64 HTG 344

$3.07 ₡1,379

-14.01%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.98 HTG 389

$2.51 ₡1,128

18.73%

Eggs

$3.63 HTG 475

$3.53 ₡1,585

2.83%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.90 HTG 901

$10.54 ₡4,738

-34.54%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.94 HTG 776

$10.57 ₡4,754

-43.80%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.25 HTG 1,208

$13.92 ₡6,261

-33.55%

Apples (1kg)

$3.80 HTG 497

$5.20 ₡2,338

-26.92%

Banana (1kg)

$0.96 HTG 125

$1.65 ₡740

-41.82%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.73 HTG 94.8

$4.89 ₡2,198

-85.07%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.35 HTG 306

$3.84 ₡1,728

-38.80%

Potato (1kg)

$7.03 HTG 919

$3.91 ₡1,757

79.80%

Onion (1kg)

$2.23 HTG 291

$3.76 ₡1,692

-40.69%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.16 HTG 151

$1.12 ₡504

3.57%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.00 HTG 130

$3.22 ₡1,447

-68.94%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.50 HTG 587

$6.02 ₡2,706

-25.25%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.23 HTG 1,466

$19.84 ₡8,919

-43.40%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.48 HTG 193

$2.81 ₡1,264

-47.33%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.24 HTG 292

$3.65 ₡1,643

-38.63%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.37 HTG 47.81

$1.08 ₡487

-65.74%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$37.59 HTG 4,908

$65.2 ₡29.3K

-42.37%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.36 HTG 47.32

$2.26 ₡1,018

-84.07%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.39 HTG 51.1

$1.78 ₡799

-78.09%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$13.97 HTG 1,824

$7.90 ₡3,551

76.84%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.39 HTG 182

$1.50 ₡673

-7.33%

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

$34.1K HTG 4.5M

$33.5K ₡15.1M

1.82%

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

$24.8K HTG 3.2M

$42.3K ₡19.0M

-41.47%

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

$169 HTG 22.1K

$93.2 ₡41.9K

81.52%

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

$46.31 HTG 6,047

$36.13 ₡16.2K

28.18%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$232 HTG 30.2K

$60.6 ₡27.2K

282.16%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$68.9 ₡31.0K

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.57 HTG 2,033

$24.94 ₡11.2K

-37.57%

Cinema Ticket

$7.67 ₡3,449

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

$972 ₡436.9K

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$18.9K ₡8.5M

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$90.5 HTG 11.8K

$70.6 ₡31.8K

28.21%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$75.2 HTG 9,822

$56.7 ₡25.5K

32.71%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$150 HTG 19.6K

$129 ₡57.8K

16.81%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$193 HTG 25.2K

$131 ₡58.8K

47.26%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,133 HTG 147.9K

$1,170 ₡525.9K

-3.17%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$929 HTG 121.3K

$943 ₡424.1K

-1.53%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,270 HTG 427.1K

$1,984 ₡892.0K

64.85%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,270 HTG 296.4K

$1,400 ₡629.5K

62.14%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,520 HTG 329.1K

$2,681 ₡1.2M

-5.99%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,892 HTG 247.1K

$2,037 ₡915.8K

-7.09%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$774 HTG 101.0K

$987 ₡443.6K

-21.58%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.62

108.82%

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

Last update for Pétion-Ville: November 2, 2026

Last update for San Jose: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Pétion-Ville

$929 42.5%

San Jose

$943 44.8% 1.6% $14

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Pétion-Ville

$447 20.4%

San Jose

$190 9% 57.5% $257

Eating Out

Pétion-Ville

$273 12.5%

San Jose

$232 11% 15% $41

Groceries & Markets

Pétion-Ville

$268 12.2%

San Jose

$403 19.1% 50.3% $135

Clothing & Footwear

Pétion-Ville

$229 10.5%

San Jose

$174 8.3% 24% $55

Getting Around

Pétion-Ville

$41 1.9%

San Jose

$81 3.8% 95.1% $39

Sport & Entertainment

Pétion-Ville

- * 0%

San Jose

$84 4%

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,133 in Pétion-Ville versus $1,170 in San Jose. 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 28% higher in San Jose, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $92 in Pétion-Ville versus $62 in San Jose. Groceries tell a different story – $268 in Pétion-Ville vs $403 in San Jose – so Pétion-Ville wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇭🇹 Pétion-Ville

🇨🇷 San Jose

🕒 Local time

18:03 6:03 PM

17:03 5:03 PM

1 h behind Pétion-Ville

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

342,400

342,188 Capital

💱 Currency

Haitian Gourde HTG G

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 HTG = 7.66 USD

1,000 HTG = 6.85 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.99 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, USD, EUR to HTG – Haitian Gourde Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇭🇹 Haitian Gourde (G)

Haitian Gourde exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 131 HTG (1,000 HTG = 7.66 USD). 1 EUR = 146 HTG (1,000 HTG = 6.85 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).

USD to HTG in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Pétion-Ville San Jose 1,590 km ≈ 2 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Pétion-Ville
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

Pétion-Ville vs San Jose: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $2,187 in Pétion-Ville, $2,107 in San Jose – San Jose comes out roughly 4% cheaper. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in utilities.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,281 per month in Pétion-Ville and $3,161 in San Jose. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

A central 1-bedroom goes for about $1,133 in Pétion-Ville and $1,170 in San Jose. The gap holds across neighborhoods – outer areas show a similar spread, just at lower price points.

Public transport costs about 42% less in Pétion-Ville. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Interestingly, groceries are about 33% cheaper in Pétion-Ville – one category where the pricier city actually offers better value.

$2,500 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $2,187 in Pétion-Ville and $2,107 in San Jose, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.

It depends on your priorities. San Jose has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $2,107 in San Jose to $2,187 in Pétion-Ville. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.