Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Salisbury, MD and San Jose

For one person, living is cheaper in San Jose: $2,107 a month against $2,274 in Salisbury, MD, rent and utilities included – about $2,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

108

Cost of Living Index in Salisbury, MD
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Salisbury, MD Living Index
101

Cost of Living Index in San Jose
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San Jose Living Index

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Salisbury, MD

🇺🇸 United States

$2,274

/mo nomad

San Jose

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$2,107

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,274 per month in Salisbury, MD vs $2,107 in San Jose, rent included.

Salisbury, MD $2,274
San Jose $2,107

A couple spends around $3,699 per month in Salisbury, MD vs $3,081 in San Jose, rent included.

Salisbury, MD $3,699
San Jose $3,081

A family of three spends $5,125 per month in Salisbury, MD vs $4,054 in San Jose, rent included.

Salisbury, MD $5,125
San Jose $4,054

Salisbury, MD costs about 8% more than San Jose, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Salisbury, MD and San Jose sit above the global median – Salisbury, MD by 68%, San Jose by 56%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$22.11 $22.11

$12.37 ₡5,563

78.74%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$95.9 $95.9

$62.4 ₡28.0K

53.80%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.44 $11.44

$11.71 ₡5,264

-2.31%

Cappuccino

$3.93 $3.93

$4.54 ₡2,040

-13.44%

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

$3.08 $3.08

$2.75 ₡1,238

12.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.02 $2.02

$1.86 ₡837

8.60%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.44 $6.44

$3.35 ₡1,505

92.24%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$9.19 $9.19

$4.32 ₡1,944

112.73%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.85 $0.85

$2.36 ₡1,061

-63.98%

White Bread (500g)

$2.48 $2.48

$3.07 ₡1,379

-19.22%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.97 $3.97

$2.51 ₡1,128

58.17%

Eggs

$4.65 $4.65

$3.53 ₡1,585

31.73%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.14 $13.14

$10.54 ₡4,738

24.67%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$15.83 $15.83

$10.57 ₡4,754

49.76%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.69 $13.69

$13.92 ₡6,261

-1.65%

Apples (1kg)

$4.78 $4.78

$5.20 ₡2,338

-8.08%

Banana (1kg)

$1.40 $1.40

$1.65 ₡740

-15.15%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.06 $2.06

$4.89 ₡2,198

-57.87%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.31 $3.31

$3.84 ₡1,728

-13.80%

Potato (1kg)

$2.15 $2.15

$3.91 ₡1,757

-45.01%

Onion (1kg)

$2.65 $2.65

$3.76 ₡1,692

-29.52%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.77 $1.77

$1.12 ₡504

58.04%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.10 $2.10

$3.22 ₡1,447

-34.78%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$7.87 $7.87

$6.02 ₡2,706

30.73%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.02 $12.02

$19.84 ₡8,919

-39.42%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.40 $1.40

$2.81 ₡1,264

-50.18%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.53 $1.53

$3.65 ₡1,643

-58.08%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.01 $2.01

$1.08 ₡487

86.11%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$49.72 $49.72

$65.2 ₡29.3K

-23.78%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.92 $4.92

$2.26 ₡1,018

117.70%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.88 $1.88

$1.78 ₡799

5.62%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$29.56 $29.56

$7.90 ₡3,551

274.18%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.92 $0.92

$1.50 ₡673

-38.67%

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

$24.3K $24.3K

$33.5K ₡15.1M

-27.42%

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

$26.0K $26.0K

$42.3K ₡19.0M

-38.48%

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

$143 $143

$93.2 ₡41.9K

53.06%

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

$39.06 $39.06

$36.13 ₡16.2K

8.11%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$24.87 $24.87

$60.6 ₡27.2K

-58.95%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$61.4 $61.4

$68.9 ₡31.0K

-10.90%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.26 $22.26

$24.94 ₡11.2K

-10.75%

Cinema Ticket

$17.12 $17.12

$7.67 ₡3,449

123.21%

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

$1,487 $1,487

$972 ₡436.9K

53.00%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,871 $9,871

$18.9K ₡8.5M

-47.69%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$88.3 $88.3

$70.6 ₡31.8K

24.98%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$56.8 $56.8

$56.7 ₡25.5K

0.19%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$140 $140

$129 ₡57.8K

8.96%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$152 $152

$131 ₡58.8K

16.37%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,247 $1,247

$1,170 ₡525.9K

6.64%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,011 $1,011

$943 ₡424.1K

7.19%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,460 $2,460

$1,984 ₡892.0K

24.01%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,093 $2,093

$1,400 ₡629.5K

49.51%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,203 $2,203

$2,681 ₡1.2M

-17.82%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,283 $2,283

$2,037 ₡915.8K

12.11%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,421 $3,421

$987 ₡443.6K

246.78%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.99

8.62

-18.91%

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

Last update for Salisbury, MD: November 1, 2026

Last update for San Jose: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Salisbury, MD

$1K 44.5%

San Jose

$943 44.8% 6.7% $68

Groceries & Markets

Salisbury, MD

$363 15.9%

San Jose

$403 19.1% 11.1% $40

Eating Out

Salisbury, MD

$329 14.5%

San Jose

$232 11% 29.4% $97

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Salisbury, MD

$207 9.1%

San Jose

$190 9% 8.1% $17

Clothing & Footwear

Salisbury, MD

$197 8.7%

San Jose

$174 8.3% 11.6% $23

Sport & Entertainment

Salisbury, MD

$96 4.2%

San Jose

$84 4% 11.9% $11

Getting Around

Salisbury, MD

$72 3.2%

San Jose

$81 3.8% 12% $8.6

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,247 in Salisbury, MD 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 in Salisbury, MD are about 3.5 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $96 in Salisbury, MD versus $62 in San Jose. Groceries tell a different story – $363 in Salisbury, MD vs $403 in San Jose – so Salisbury, MD wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Salisbury, MD

🇨🇷 San Jose

🕒 Local time

11:14 11:14 AM

10:14 10:14 AM

1 h behind Salisbury, MD

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

28,480

342,188 Capital

💱 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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Highest

Between locations

Salisbury, MD San Jose 3,270 km ≈ 4 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Salisbury, MD
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

Salisbury, MD vs San Jose: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Salisbury, MD costs about 8% more than San Jose, 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 $3,411 per month in Salisbury, MD 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 $1,247 in Salisbury, MD and $1,170 in San Jose. The gap holds across neighborhoods – outer areas show a similar spread, just at lower price points.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $2,274 in Salisbury, MD and $2,107 in San Jose. That makes San Jose about 7% cheaper.

Public transport costs about 24% less in Salisbury, MD. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

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

If budget matters most, go with San Jose. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Salisbury, MD makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.